Green synthesis and characterization of titanium dioxide nanoparticles using leaf extract of Pouteria campechiana and larvicidal and pupicidal activity on Aedes aegypti

The frequent application of synthetic insecticides creates resistance among insects, including mosquitoes, and causes environmental pollution and health issues. The current work aim at assessing the possibilities to produce and characterize the titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles (TiO₂ NPs) mediated through the aqueous leaf extract of Pouteria campechiana, and their larvicidal and pupicidal activities against Aedes aegypti. The attained results showed that the aqueous leaf extract of P. campechiana had the efficiency to fabricate TiO₂ NPs from TiO₂. Under the UV-vis spectrum analysis, a sharp peak was recorded at 320 nm, which indicated the production of TiO₂ NPs by the plant extract. The SEM analysis revealed that the synthesized TiO₂ NPs were spherical, and 5 dissimilar diffractions were detected in the XRD spectrum analysis related to the TiO₂ NPs. In FTIR analysis, a prominent peak was found at 1052.41 cm^-1, corresponding to alcohol, and confirmed metal reduction. In the EDX analysis, there was a signal of around 58.44%, confirming the decrease in Ti from TiO₂ NPs, and the remaining percentages were Ca, Al, and Mg. About 900 μg mL^-1 of TiO₂ NPs had excellent lethal activity against various larvae and pupa stages of Ae. aegypti. The attained results showed that the P. campechiana aqueous leaf extract could reduce TiO₂ into TiO₂ NPs and could be considered a mosquito control agent. Furthermore, this is the initial report about the aqueous leaf extract of P. campechiana effectively synthesizing the TiO₂ NPs with anti-mosquito activity.