BIOEFFICacy OF FORMULATES FROM ESSENTIAL OILS FROM DIFFERENT BOTANICAL GENERA ON Lipaphis pseudobrassicae DAVIS (HEMIPTERA: APHIDIDAE)
Natural insecticides, sublethal effects, aphids, Melaleuca leucadendra, Lippia gracilis, Citrus reticulata, (E)-Nerolidol.
The bioactive compounds present in the secondary metabolism of plants have a high insecticidal potential on aphids. Lipaphis psedobrassicae is a specific pest of the Brassicaceae family, which causes direct and indirect damage to these plants and requires alternative bioactive control methods to synthetic chemicals. The main objectives of this research were to characterize the chemical composition of essential oils (OEs) from Melaleuca leucadendra, Lippia gracilis and Citrus reticulata, to evaluate the aphid activity, repellent and sublethal effects of EOs and their major constituents (CM) on L. pseudobrassicae. The identification of the CM of the EOs was done through Gas Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). Toxicity of substances was performed via topical contact and repellency with double choice, all compared with Azamax® and Keshet 25 EC®. Sublethal effects were followed from the development of N1 nymphs topically treated with M. leucadendra CL30 and its CM. (E)-Nerolidol, Carvacrol and Limonene were the CM of EOs from M. leucadendra, L. gracilis and C. reticulata, respectively. The highest toxicity was observed for Keshet 25 EC® (LC50 0.269µl.mL-1) followed by M. leucadendra (36.85µl.mL-1), L. gracilis (52.33µl.mL-1), Carvacrol (57.98µl.mL-1), (E)-Nerolidol (66.32µl.mL-1), C. reticulata (68.56µl.mL-1), Limonene (81.11µl.mL-1) and Azamax® (269.81 µl.mL-1). There was repellency of all substances tested for L. pseudobrassicae. (E)-Nerolidol significantly reduced reproductive periods, adult longevity, total fecundity, life cycle, survival (sxj and lx), net reproductive (R0), intrinsic growth (rm) and finite increase (λ), while M. leucadendra prolonged adult longevity and time between generations (T) causing insecticide induced hormesis in L. pseudobrassicae. The EOs and compounds investigated here demonstrated efficiency for use in the management of aphids in Brassicaceae, however other research detailing the behavioral, enzymatic and beneficial insect performance of these molecules are important for a better vision of future formulations containing these bioactive compounds.