Electrospun ethylcellulose-based nanofibrous mats with insect-repellent activity

Abstract

Mosquito repellent textiles are increasingly in demand from consumers as protective textiles against mosquito-borne diseases like malaria, yellow fever or dengue. In this work, the production and behaviour of repellent-containing electrospun ethylcellulose nanofibrous mats for the control of disease vectors is presented. Citriodiol (CD), a naturally and sustainably sourced biorepellent, was used as against Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, the main insect vector of dengue virus. The effect of electrospinning solvent and CD content and distribution on the morphology of monolithic and core-enriched nanofibers was examined. The effectiveness of these novel CD-loaded nanofibrous mats to repel mosquitoes was assessed using standard methods. The use of biopolymer-based core-enriched nanofibrous mats resulted a very promising strategy for the development of functional nanofibrous textiles containing a natural repellent cargo, such as disposable outdoor goods.