Abstract:
Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) has long been a serious health problem in
Indonesia, including Kalimantan (Borneo), as is evident from the increased
case fatality rate in Banjarbaru city. Synthetic chemical insecticides have
frequently been used to eradicate mosquitoes, but are toxic to the body and
resistance of adult and larvae mosquito Aedes aegypti has been reported. The
present study aims to assess the effect of essential oils of turmeric rhizomes
(Curcuma domestica Val) against Aedes aegypti larvae.
This was an experimental study of post test one group design, performed in
two phases, using Aedes aegypti larvae as test organisms. In the first phase,
laboratory-reared larvae were used for calculation of the LC50 and LC90, while
in the second phase the test organisms were larvae taken from 75 buildings
that had been designated based on a preliminary survey in four sub-districts in
Banjarbaru city with a high incidence of dengue cases. Probit analysis of was
used to calculate LC50 and LC90, and the Kruskal-Wallis test to determine the
larvicidal potency of turmeric rhizome essential oils.
This study demonstrates that turmeric rhizome essential oils effectively killed
laboratory-reared Aedes aegypti larvae at an LC50 of 9.239 ppm and an LC90 of
13.565 ppm. The effectiveness of the essential oils of turmeric rhizomes
(Curcuma domestica Val.) for killing Aedes aegypti larvae in residential areas
was 68%.
Turmeric (Curcuma domestica Val.) rhizome essential oils can kill Aedes
aegypti larvae, are environment friendly and can be used for the control of
mosquitoes.
