A Preparation Method of Nano-Pesticide Improves the Selective Toxicity toward Natural Enemies

Abstract

Various nano-delivery systems have been designed to deliver synthetic/botanical pesticides for improved bioactivity. However, the enhanced toxicity of nanocarrier-loaded pesticides may injure the natural enemies, and their selective toxicity should be evaluated before the large-scale application. In this context, a star polymer (SPc)-based cyantraniliprole (CNAP) nano-delivery system was constructed, and its selective toxicity was evaluated using pest Frankliniella occidentalis (WFT) and predator Orius sauteri. The amide NH of CNAP could assemble with carbonyl groups or tertiary amines of SPc through hydrogen bonds to form CNAP/SPc complex spontaneously. The above self-assembly decreased the particle size of CNAP from 808 to 299 nm. With the help of SPc, the lethal concentration 50 (LC50) values of CNAP decreased from 99 to 54 mg/L and 230 to 173 mg/L toward WFTs and O. sauteri due to the enhancement of broad-spectrum bioactivity. Interestingly, the toxicity selective ratio (TSR) of CNAP increased from 2.33 to 3.23 with the help of SPc, revealing the higher selectivity of SPc-loaded CNAP. To our knowledge, it was the first successful exploration of the selective toxicity of nanocarrier-loaded pesticides, and the higher selective toxicity of SPc-loaded CNAP was beneficial for alleviating the negative impacts on predators.

A Nano-Delivery System Enhances the Stomach Toxicity of Methoxyfenozide against Spodoptera litura by Suppressing the Synthesis of Insect Cuticle Protein

“…However, the extremely high concentration of SPc can induce strong immune responses of insects and adversely impair their life history traits. For instance, the lethal concentration 50 (LC 50 ) values of SPc were identified as 2.14 and 26.33 mg/mL toward fruit fly larvae and adults, respectively, and the LC 50 values were 43.96 and 19.85 mg/mL against ladybirds by soaking and feeding methods. , In order to assess the potential cytotoxic effects of SPc, we performed cytotoxicity assays utilizing Sf9 cells with SPc (10 μg/mL). The survival rate of the cells was approximately 90% at 24 h after treatment .…”

Calcium nutrition nanoagent rescues tomatoes from mosaic virus disease by accelerating calcium transport and activating antiviral immunity

“…DLC was tested according to previous described methods ( Yan et al., 2022 ; Wang et al., 2022b ). Briefly, excess calcium glycinate (603.5 mg) was mixed with SPc (229.26 mg) in ddH 2 O (23 mL).…”

“…Our studying group has designed and constructed a star polycation (SPc)-based nano-delivery system that can be applied to deliver various exogenous substances such as double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) and synthetic/botanical pesticides ( Li et al., 2019a ; Yan et al., 2021a ; Yan et al., 2021b ; Ma et al., 2022a ; Zhang et al., 2022a ). The SPc-based nano-delivery system can reduce the particle size of synthetic/botanical pesticides and increase their water solubility and dispersity ( Yan et al., 2021b ; Yan et al., 2022 ; Wang et al., 2022b ). At the cellular level, the SPc can activate the clathrin-mediated endocytosis for enhanced cellular uptake and promote the endosomal escape for intracellular spreading of exogenous substances ( Wang et al., 2021 ; Ma et al., 2022b ; Yang et al., 2022 ; Zhang et al., 2022b ).…”

Multifunctional Nanoparticles and Nanopesticides in Agricultural Application

“…They also used the SPc-based nanodelivery system to deliver cyanobenamide (CNAP), and evaluated its selective toxicity against the pest western flower thrips (WFT) and the predator Orius sauteri . SPc-loaded CNAP showed greater selective toxicity, which enhanced the negative effects of CNAP on predators [ 83 ].…”