CHEMICO-ANALYSIS OF SEMIOCHEMICAL COMPOUNDS FROM PRE-EXISTING COLONY COMPONENTS INFLUENCING OVIPOSITION IN PHLEBOTOMUS ARGENTIPES (DIPTERA: PSYCHODIDAE)

Objective: Increasing instances of insecticide resistance among Phlebotomus argentipes- a prominent vector of Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Indian subcontinent has opportunized vector control strategy to negotiate with the potentiality of semiochemical for controlling the menace caused by them. Behavioural bioassay experiments with the fractionated extracts of frass and conspecific eggs, being obtained as remnant ingredients from the pre-existing colony of P. argentipes, revealed its potentiality for attracting and stimulating female sand flies towards itself purposely for oviposition, leading to the regulation of its generation. Method: Following the observation in the previous study, present study documents the characterization of responsible semiochemical compound(s) of aqueous extract of frass and Hexane extract of conspecific eggs via Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) technique. Novel and exclusive result: Heptacosane [C27H56], a Cuticular Hydrocarbon (CHC) was characterized as a common semiochemical compound in both type of extracts responsible for attracting and stimulating oviposition responses among P. argentipes. Conclusion: The identified chemical compound eliciting oviposition responses among the P. argentipes would further complement the novel targeted surveillance approach of sand fly population by baiting them with an attractive lure for orienting them towards the desired site treated with attract-and-kill oviposition traps ultimately reducing human resource devastation at a mass scale. Also, it holds futuristic attribute towards improved maintenance and productivity of laboratory-bred sand fly colonies that usually threatened due to high mortality of ovipositing females.