Acta Entomologica Sinica (2009) 52, 453-460

Ying-Juan Yao, Wan-Lun Cai, Chang-Ju Yang, Hong-Yu Zhang and Hong-Xia Hua (2009)
[Fumigant toxicity of ß-asarone extracted from Acorus calamus against four stored grain beetles]
Acta Entomologica Sinica 52 (4), 453-460
Abstract: Plant secondary metabolites play important roles in plant-insect relationships. Some plant-based extracts are insect repellents or have fumigant or contact toxicity. ß-asarone is the main active ingredient of Acorus calamus L., a commonly used Chinese traditional medicinal herb. In this study, the knockdown and lethal impacts of ß-asarone on four main stored-grain insects, Sitophilus zeamais, Rhyzopertha dominica, Tribolium castaneum and Callosobruchus maculatus were assayed in the laboratory. The study results showed that ß-asarone extracted from A. calamus rhizome had significant knockdown and lethal impact on the pests. After the pests were treated with ß-asarone for 120 h at the concentration of 50 µL/L, 100% of the C. maculatus, S. zeamais and R. dominica adults, and 50% of T. castaneum adults were knocked down; the mortality rates of T. castaneum, S. zeamais, R. dominica and C. maculatus adults were 8.89%, 81.23%, 97.78% and 100%, respectively. After 24 h exposure, the KC₅₀ values for S. zeamais, R. dominica, T. castaneum and C. maculatus adults were 49.38, 102.96, 124.04 and 1.07 µL/L, respectively. After 120 h exposure, the LC50 values for S. zeamais, R. dominica, T. castaneum and C. maculatus adults were 17.82, 4.42, 116.48 and 0.73 µL/L, respectively. It is so concluded that the ß-asarone extracted from A. calamus has distinct fumigant toxicity against all the four pests assayed, and thus can be exploited as a potential fumigant.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
(original language: Chinese)
Database assignments for author(s): Hongyu Zhang, Ying-Juan Yao

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
control - general

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Tribolium castaneum
	Callosobruchus maculatus
	Sitophilus zeamais
	Rhyzopertha dominica