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Insecticidal toxicity of thirteen commercial plant essential oils against Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

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Abstract

We evaluated the chemical composition of thirteen commercially available plant essential oils and their insecticidal activity against the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to characterize the chemical components of the essential oils. A total of 113 compounds were identified, with terpenes (>80%) and aromatic compounds as primary constituents. The toxicity of each pure essential oil was tested separately on third instar larvae and adult beet armyworms by topical application of 0.5 μl oil/ insect. All plant essential oils were found to be harmful to S. exigua, with third instar larvae showing significantly more susceptibility than adults. Essential oils of Cinnamomum zeylanicum and Juniperus virginiana showed the highest toxicity (mortality above 90%) to larvae, while C. zeylanicum and Pogostemon cablin oils were the most harmful compounds (95% mortality) to adults. Cymbopogon winterianus oil caused delayed mortality (similar to the effects of insect growth regulators) as well as malformations in pupae. C. winterianus, Ocimum basilicum and Rosmarinus officinalis oils significantly reduced fecundity, whereas no significant effects were observed on fertility.

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Acknowledgements

This study was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (project AGL3013-47603-C2-1-R to E. Viñuela and P. Medina). The authors thank CAPES for PDSE scholarship (BEX 7003/15-03) awarded to Thiago J.S. Alves and the help provided by Sergio Estébanez García in the experimental assay and his contributions and suggestions in the current work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unidad de Protección de Cultivos, Departamento de Producción Agraria, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería Agronómica, Alimentaria y de Biosistemas, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain

    Ana Murcia-Meseguer, Flor Budia & Pilar Medina

  2. Departamento de Agronomia. Setor de Entomologia, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Av. Dom Manoel de Medeiros s/n, Dois Irmãos, Recife, PE, 52171-900, Brazil

    Thiago J. S. Alves

  3. Departamento de Química Orgánica e Inorgánica, EPSL, Universidad de Jaén, Linares, Jaén, Spain

    Antonio Ortiz

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  1. Ana Murcia-Meseguer
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  2. Thiago J. S. Alves
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  3. Flor Budia
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Correspondence to Pilar Medina.

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Murcia-Meseguer, A., Alves, T.J.S., Budia, F. et al. Insecticidal toxicity of thirteen commercial plant essential oils against Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). Phytoparasitica 46, 233–245 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12600-018-0655-9

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