In pursuit of potent and environmentally benign insecticides targeting the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor, a series of novel meta-diamide compounds bearing a phthalimide were rationally designed and synthesized. Bioassay studies revealed that most of the target compounds exhibited promising larvicidal activity against () and (). Notably, the most active compound displayed exceptional potency with LC values of 3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCalcium (Ca) is an essential mineral nutrient and plays a crucial signaling role in all living organisms. Increasing Ca content in staple foods such as rice is vital for improving Ca nutrition of humans. Here we map a quantitative trait locus that controls Ca concentration in rice grains and identify the causal gene as GCSC1 (Grain Ca and Sr Concentrations 1), which encodes a chloroplast vesicle localized homo-oligomeric protein.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe fall armyworm (FAW) is a serious agricultural pest and has developed resistance to multiple insecticides. It is necessary to introduce novel insecticide(s) for controlling FAW. Isocycloseram is a completely novel isoxazoline insecticide.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Ionotropic γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor (GABAR) in an insect is the major inhibitory receptor and is one of the most important targets for insecticides. Due to the high spatiotemporal resolution of GABAR, the photopharmacological ligands acting on it in vertebrates but not insect have been developed.
Results: In this study, two types of photochromic ligands (PCLs) including DTFIPs (DTFIP1 and DTFIP2) and ABFIPs (p-, m-, and o-ABFIP) were synthesized by incorporating photoswitch azobenzene or dithienylethene into fipronil (FIP), which is the antagonist of insect GABAR.
Photopharmacology provides superior temporal and spatial resolution for the study of biological functions of γ-aminobutyric acid receptors (GABARs), and photopharmacology based on GABARs has significantly advanced the research of neurons and cells. Herein, we reported the azobenzene-phenylpyrazole () for controlling the function of GABARs by light. The insecticidal activity of against larvae was different before and after light illumination.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe resistance to dieldrin gene (RDL) encodes the primary subunit of the insect ionotropic γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor (GABAR), which is the target of phenylpyrazole and isoxazoline insecticides. The splice variants in exons 3 and 6 of RDL, which have been widely explored in many insects, modulate the agonist potency of the homomeric RDL GABAR and potentially play an important role in the development of insects. In the present study, four splice variants of exon 9 were identified in RDL of the small brown planthopper, Laodelphax striatellus (LsRDL), resulting in LsRDL-9a, LsRDL-9a', LsRDL-9b, and LsRDL-9c.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBroflanilide, a novel meta-diamide insecticide, shows high insecticidal activity against agricultural pests and is scheduled to be launched onto the market in 2020. However, little information about its potential toxicological effects on fish has been reported. In this study, broflanilide showed low toxicity to the zebrafish, Danio rerio, with LC > 10 mg L at 96 h and also did not inhibit GABA-induced currents of the heteromeric Drα1β2Sγ2 GABA receptor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Two-spotted spider mite (TSSM), Tetranychus urticae Koch is a serious agricultural pest and has developed high levels of resistance to many acaricides. Hence, screening new acaricides is important in the control of TSSM. Fluralaner, a novel isoxazoline, has high activity against agricultural and ectoparasitic pests; however, little information is available about its effects on agricultural mites.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Fluralaner, a novel pesticide that targets the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor (GABAR) subunit of resistant to dieldrin (RDL), exhibits strong potential to be an insecticide to control agricultural insect pests. However, the risk and action of fluralaner to economic insects, e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe ionotropic GABA receptor (GABAR) is the main fast inhibitory post-synaptic receptor and is also an important insecticidal target. Effect of insecticides on fish has attracted intensive attention. However, no systematic study on heteromeric zebrafish GABAR expressed in oocytes has been reported to date.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInsect γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor (GABAR) is one of the major targets of insecticides. In the present study, cDNAs (CsRDL1A and CsRDL2S) encoding the two isoforms of RDL subunits were cloned from the rice stem borer Chilo suppressalis. Transcripts of both genes demonstrated similar expression patterns in different tissues and developmental stages, although CsRDL2S was ∼2-fold more abundant than CsRDL1A throughout all development stages.
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