Attractive Sugar Bait Formulation for Development of Attractive Toxic Sugar Bait for Control of Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus)

Background. Attractive toxic sugar bait (ATSB), based on “attract and kill” approach, is a novel and promising strategy for mosquito control. Formulation of an attractive sugar bait (ASB) solution by selecting an efficient olfaction stimulant and preparation of an optimized sugar-attractant dosage is a significant component for the success of the approach. Methods. Current study evaluated relative potential of nine ASBs, formulated by combination of sugar and fresh fruit juices (guava, mango, muskmelon, orange, papaya, pineapple, plum, sweet lemon, and watermelon) in attracting Aedes aegypti adults. Freshly extracted and 48-hour-fermented juices were combined with 10% sucrose solution (w/v) in 1 : 1 ratio. Cage bioassays were conducted against two laboratory strains (susceptible: AND-Aedes aegypti; deltamethrin-selected: AND-Aedes aegypti-DL10) and two field-collected strains (Shahdara strain of Aedes aegypti: SHD-Delhi; Govindpuri strain of Aedes aegypti: GVD-Delhi). Each of the nine ASBs was assayed, individually or in groups of three, for its attraction potential based on the relative number of mosquito landings. The data were analysed for statistical significance using PASW (SPSS) software 19.0 program. Results. The prescreening bioassay with individual ASB revealed significantly higher efficacy of ASB containing guava/plum/mango juice than that containing six other juices (p