Assessment of attractive toxic sugar bait (atsb) on female aedes aegypti and aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) / Nur Athen Mohd Hardy Abdullah

The thesis aimed to determine the effect of two prototype attractive toxic sugar bait
(ATSB) formulations on the mortality adult female Aedes aegypti (Ae. aegypti) and
Aedes albopictus (Ae. albopictus). The ATSB is an alternative adult mosquito control
that exploits the sugar feeding behaviour of mosquitoes by attracting them using
aromatic compound and then killing them through ingestion of sugar incorporated
with oral toxin. There were three objectives achieved in this thesis. The first objective
was to determine the effect of four (10%, 30%, 50% and 70%) sugar concentrations to
the fecundity and biting behaviour of Ae. albopictus. ANOVA was conducted to
determine the significant difference between the sugar concentrations and the
fecundity and biting behaviour of mosquito. The result after the 6-days experiment
period indicated that the daily fecundity and biting rate of females Ae. albopictus
increase as it fed on higher sugar concentration with the highest fecundity and biting
rate recorded in 70% sucrose concentration. The second objective of this thesis was to
determine the female Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus response to papaya and pineapple
peel extracts after 2 minutes in an olfactometer. The experiment was conducted in two
assays; no choice assay where the mosquitoes exposed to papaya or pineapple peel
extracts and choice assay where the mosquitoes exposed to both peel extracts
simultaneously. The number of mosquito attracted to the peel extracts was analysed
with t-test. Both Aedes species attracted to papaya and pineapple peels extracts in no
choice assay. In choice assay, Ae. albopictus also attracted to both peel extracts while
Ae. aegypti was significantly attracted to papaya peel extract only. The third objective
was to examine the efficacy of papaya seed extract as the oral toxin component in two
attractive toxic sugar bait (ATSB) formulations on the mortality of female Ae. aegypti
and Ae. albopictus in a laboratory setting. A papaya seed toxicity bioassay was
conducted to determine the papaya seed extract concentration needed in ATSB
formulations and probit analysis was conducted at 24-hour interval to provide the
mean lethal concentration (LC) required to kill 50% and 90% of both mosquito
populations (LC50 and LC90) respectively. 1% papaya seed extract concentration was
selected as the oral toxin component in both ATSB formulations based on LC values.
In two separate cages, both female Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes were
exposed to ATSB A and ATSB B for 72-hours to determine the mortality rate. The
efficacy of 1% papaya seed extract was measured by comparing the mortality rates of
ATSB A and ATSB B against a control population. The results indicated that the Ae.
aegypti mortality rate was significantly higher in ATSB A and ATSB B but there was
no significant difference between Ae. albopictus mortality rates in ATSB A and the
control group. However, the Ae. albopictus mortality rate was found to be
significantly higher in ATSB B. Therefore, the study concluded that, while both
papaya peel and pineapple peel extracts are toxic to mosquitoes, the addition of 1%
papaya seed extract increased the mortality rates in both Aedes species, especially in
the Ae. albopictus population. The study’s findings can contribute in data collection of
ATSB application to control the adult mosquito population.