Larvicidal activity of green synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles from Carica papaya leaf extract

In the current study, zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were green synthesized using Carica papaya leaf extract and tested for larvicidal activity against Anopheles culicifacies. The C. papaya ZnO nanoparticles (CP-ZnONPs) were characterized using UV–Visible spectrophotometer, FTIR, XRD, and TEM analysis. The hemolytic and antioxidant assays were also performed for the estimation of toxicity and the antioxidant potential of the CP-ZnONPs. The synthesized CP-ZnONPs were crystalline in nature with an average size of 20 nm. The observed LC50 and LC90 values against A. culicifacies larvae after 48 h of exposure were 92.17 ± 1.02 and 316.66 ± 1.24 µg/mL. CP-ZnONPs offered larval mortality of and 96.36 ± 1.15% after 48 h at 500 µg/mL. Free radical inhibition of 58.02% was observed at the highest tested concentration (100 mg/mL). The results strongly endorse the development of CP-ZnONPs as novel larvicidal agents.