Every year Chile exports about 2000 tons of boldo folium (Peumus boldus), which is used around the world as a traditional herbal medicinal product (THMP), mostly to relieve gastrointestinal disorders. This biomass may be a resource for the agrochemical industry to manufacture botanical insecticides. In this regard, the insecticidal potential of boldo has been poorly investigated. In the present work, hydrodistillation of a commercial boldo folium gave 1.5% (w/w) of a yellowish essential oil (boldo essential oil, BEO) containing 1,8-cineole (20.7%), p-cymene (18.5%), limonene (9.1%), ascaridole (9.1%) and β-phellandrene (6.4%) as the main constituents, as determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). NMR analysis allowed us to determine that ascaridole was mainly represented by the cis-isomer. BEO was toxic to larvae of the filariasis vector Culex quinquefasciatus and adults of the housefly Musca domestica, showing LC 50 /LD 50 values of 67.9 mg·L − 1 and 98.5 µg·adult − 1 , respectively. On the other hand, lower insecticidal activity was observed against larvae of the moth pest Spodoptera littoralis (LD 50 of 268.9 µg·larva − 1 ). It is worth noting that, when tested at LC 90 concentration, BEO was significantly less toxic to aquatic microcrustacean Daphnia magna than the conventional insecticide α-cypermethrin. Finally, in the attempt to explore the BEO mode of action, we tested it for acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitory properties using the Ellman method, obtaining negligible effects (IC 50 = 0.45 mg·mL − 1 ). Taken together, these results gave new insights into the potential of BEO as a future ingredient of botanical insecticides.

Exploring the insecticidal potential of boldo (Peumus boldus) essential oil: Toxicity to pests and vectors and non-target impact on the microcrustacean daphnia magna

Sut S.;Dall'Acqua S.
;
2019

Abstract

Every year Chile exports about 2000 tons of boldo folium (Peumus boldus), which is used around the world as a traditional herbal medicinal product (THMP), mostly to relieve gastrointestinal disorders. This biomass may be a resource for the agrochemical industry to manufacture botanical insecticides. In this regard, the insecticidal potential of boldo has been poorly investigated. In the present work, hydrodistillation of a commercial boldo folium gave 1.5% (w/w) of a yellowish essential oil (boldo essential oil, BEO) containing 1,8-cineole (20.7%), p-cymene (18.5%), limonene (9.1%), ascaridole (9.1%) and β-phellandrene (6.4%) as the main constituents, as determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). NMR analysis allowed us to determine that ascaridole was mainly represented by the cis-isomer. BEO was toxic to larvae of the filariasis vector Culex quinquefasciatus and adults of the housefly Musca domestica, showing LC 50 /LD 50 values of 67.9 mg·L − 1 and 98.5 µg·adult − 1 , respectively. On the other hand, lower insecticidal activity was observed against larvae of the moth pest Spodoptera littoralis (LD 50 of 268.9 µg·larva − 1 ). It is worth noting that, when tested at LC 90 concentration, BEO was significantly less toxic to aquatic microcrustacean Daphnia magna than the conventional insecticide α-cypermethrin. Finally, in the attempt to explore the BEO mode of action, we tested it for acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitory properties using the Ellman method, obtaining negligible effects (IC 50 = 0.45 mg·mL − 1 ). Taken together, these results gave new insights into the potential of BEO as a future ingredient of botanical insecticides.
2019
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11577/3306078
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