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This study aimed to compare the susceptibility of tomato pinworm, Tuta absoluta, from four Brazilian regions to insect growth disruptor (IGD) insecticides by tomato leaf-dip bioassays. Larval mortality was assessed seven days after exposure to insecticide-treated leaves. The control failure likelihood (CFL) was estimated after larval bioassays with IGDs recommended label rate. Mortality data were subjected to Probit and variance analysis. All populations of tomato pinworm showed significant resistance to one or more insecticides. The LC50 values ranged from 0.34 to 0.63 g L−1 (chlorfluazuron), 0.17 to 0.92 g L−1 (teflubenzuron), 0.13 to 1.28 g L−1 (novaluron), 0.29 to 0.46 g L−1 (lufenuron), and 0.71 to 4.60 g L−1 (methoxyfenozide). The resistance ratios varied from 1.2 to 1.8-fold (chlorfluazuron), 1.4 to 5.5-fold (teflubenzuron), 1.2 to 9.9-fold (novaluron), 1.0 to 1.6-fold (lufenuron), and 1.5 to 6.5-fold (methoxyfenozide). Despite the low resistance ratios ( 54%, indicating likely control failure at the IGD label rates. We detected significant variations among populations of T. absoluta for activity of enzymes glutathione S-transferases (GST), cytochrome P450-dependent monooxygenases (MFO) and α-esterase (EST), however there was no significant difference between the populations for activity of β-esterase (EST). The evolution of resistance in T. absoluta populations to IGDs observed in this study is likely due to high selection pressure, demanding insecticide resistance management practices and environmentally sustainable tactics to obtain a more effective control of this pest.

Competition with weeds and lack of selective herbicides registered for bird’s-foot trefoil crops affect their development and limit productivity. Therefore, this study aimed at evaluating selectivity of pre-emergent herbicides in bird’s-foot trefoil crops. Experiments were carried out in a greenhouse and on a field where the following herbicides were evaluated and compared with the control: imazethapyr, diclosulam, flumetsulam, metribuzin, s-metolachlor, sulfentrazone, clomazone and isoxaflutole. Regarding variables under evaluation, phytotoxicity (PHYTO), plant stature, dry mass of the aerial part (DMAP) and dry mass of roots (DMR) were evaluated in the greenhouse, while plant population, PHYTO and DMAP were assessed on the field. The criterion to determine selectivity were: PHYTO below 15% and not reducing the plant population nor morphological variables, by comparison with the control. The variables were negatively affected by the herbicides clomazone, metribuzin, isoxaflutole, diclosulam, s-metolachlor, in which the crop population was reduced in 98, 92, 83, 63, 48 and 22%, respectively. Following the criteria, only the herbicide sulfentrazone as a pre-emergente is selective to bird’s-foot trefoil crop (cultivar ‘Sao Gabriel’).

Pneumonia is caused by microorganisms that settle in the lungs, which may reach the pulmonary alveoli and cause respiratory failure. Antibiotic treatments are the most used, although their use may not be efficient due to bacterial resistance. The antimicrobial peptide BP100 is a promising candidate for a new antibiotic due to its low susceptibility to bacterial resistance. It can be most effective when carried with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and polymer coatings for topical use. The goal of this work is to evaluate the effect of the transposition of the BP100 peptide carried on a gold nanoparticle coated with three types of polymers (polyethylene glycol (PEG), polystyrene (PS) and polyethylene glycol-block-polystyrene (PEG-b-PS)) using a lung surfactant (LS) model. The Gibbs free energies for nanoparticle transpositions are performed using coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) and umbrella sampling. The results demonstrate that the process is spontaneous for the BP100 adsorbed on the AuNPs encapsulated with PEG. The PEG effect on the AuNP-BP100-PEG system works as a protection method or a ligand competition for BP100 transposition. However, it is observed that the BP100-PEG nanoparticle breaks up as reaching the aqueous phase. Then, BP100 migrates to the polar heads region of the negatively charged phospholipids. It is possible to evaluate the effects of nanocarriers on the LS model. Besides that it is suggested the feasibility of applying antimicrobial peptides carried on PEG capped AuNPs for possible treatments of lung diseases.

Among the species of the genus Cyperus occurring in paddy rice, C. esculentus, C. difformis and C. iria are the most important, and the latter two are reported as resistant to herbicides in Rio Grande do Sul (RS). The aim of this work was to characterize and mapping the occurrence of resistant plants of the genus Cyperus in areas of paddy rice in RS State, and to analyze the agronomic factors that interfere in the resistance selection. Seeds from individual plants were harvested in the 2014/15 crop, characterized as control failures by the application of acetolactate synthase inhibitors (ALS), totaling 43 samples. At the time of collection, the grower was inquired on aspects related to the management of weeds in the crop. Seeds were germinated in BOD and when seedlings were in two leaves stage they were transplanted into 0.3 L pots containing substrate. When the plants had 4-6 leaves, imazapyr + imazapic was spray at the registration rate. Thirty days after application, control of the tested biotypes was evaluated, converting the data to binary scale, where zero (0) and one (1) correspond to susceptibility and resistance, respectively. The agronomic factors that denote the high selection pressure of resistant biotypes are the consecutive use of Clearfield® technology, the use of higher doses than the registration and the low crop rotation adoption. Although not mentioned as one of the main weeds, it is observed that almost half of the samples collected from plants of the genus Cyperus are resistant to the ALS inhibitors, distributed in almost all the growing regions. RESUMO: Entre as espécies do gênero Cyperus ocorrentes na lavoura de arroz, destacam-se C. esculentus, C. difformis e C. iria, sendo as duas últimas relatadas como resistentes a herbicidas no Rio Grande do Sul (RS). Os objetivos deste trabalho foram caracterizar e mapear a ocorrência de plantas resistentes do gênero Cyperus em áreas de arroz irrigado no RS e analisar os fatores agronômicos que interferem na seleção da resistência. Foram realizadas coletas de sementes de plantas individuais na safra de 2014/15, caracterizadas como falhas de controle pela aplicação de inibidores da acetolactato sintase (ALS), totalizando 43 amostras. Por ocasião da coleta, o produtor foi arguido sobre aspectos relacionados ao manejo de plantas daninhas na lavoura. Na sequência, as sementes foram germinadas em BOD e, quando as plântulas estavam em estádio de até duas folhas, transplantadas para vasos com capacidade para 0.3 L contendo substrato. Quando as plantas apresentavam entre 4 e 6 folhas, foi aplicado imazapyr+imazapic na dose de registro. Aos 30 dias após a aplicação, foi avaliado controle dos biótipos testados, convertendo-se os dados em escala binária, em que zero (0) e um (1) correspondem a suscetibilidade e resistência, respectivamente. Os fatores agronômicos que denotam a alta pressão de seleção de biótipos resistentes são o uso consecutivo da tecnologia Clearfield®, o uso de doses superiores à de registro e a baixa adoção de rotação de culturas. Mesmo não sendo citada como uma das principais plantas daninhas, observa-se que quase a metade das amostras coletadas de plantas do gênero Cyperus são resistentes aos inibidores da ALS, distribuídas na quase totalidade das regiões de cultivo.

The tomato leafminer, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick), is one of the most important pests of tomato worldwide. The use of chemicals is still the major tactic of control against this pest in Brazil, where spray overuse leads to resistance, frequently associated with control failures in the field. In this study, a survey of the susceptibility to indoxacarb, metaflumizone, chlorfenapyr, cartap, and abamectin aimed to determine the resistance status of T. absoluta populations. Also, the major enzyme systems associated with metabolic resistance were assessed to infer variability. The LC50 values varied among the populations for abamectin (0.54–3.38 mg a.i./L), cartap (93.1–589.8 mg a.i./L), chlorfenapyr (0.62–2.83 mg a.i./L), indoxacarb (0.86–2.89 mg a.i./L), and metaflumizone (0.35–7.44 mg a.i./L). Resistance ratios varied among populations being 6.2-, 6.4-, 4.6-, 3.3-, and 21.2-times for abamectin, cartap, chlorfenapyr, indoxacarb, and metaflumizone, respectively. Only the cartap confidence limits of the LC80 bracketed the recommended label concentration for three populations (Anapolis, Guaraciaba do Norte, and Tiangua), suggesting control failures. No cross-resistance was observed between indoxacarb and metaflumizone, and natural variation may explain the variability of response to this latter insecticide. The activity of enzymes frequently associated with metabolism of insecticides significantly differed among populations, and glutathione S-transferases and cytochrome P450-dependent monooxygenases were variable among the populations of T. absoluta, while alpha and beta-esterases were very homogeneous. T. absoluta resistance to abamectin and cartap has not been critical in Brazil despite their long use and together with chlorfenapyr appear to be an interesting option of rotation with indoxacarb, for which there is no cross-resistance to metaflumizone.

BACKGROUND Phthalic and anthranilic diamides comprise a new insecticide class recently registered in Brazil to control Lepidoptera such as Tuta absoluta (Meyrick). Therefore, the baseline of susceptibility was determined for eight representative field populations of this species to establish a resistance monitoring programme. The potential for cross-resistance as well as detoxification metabolism was assessed in order to fine-tune the resistance management programme. RESULTS Brazilian populations were very susceptible to chlorantraniliprole (LC50 values varied from 3.17 to 29.64 µg AI L−1), cyantraniliprole (LC50 values varied from 8.61 to 28.95 µg AI L−1) and flubendiamide (LC50 values varied from 94 to 230 µg AI L−1), with respective resistance ratios of 9.33-, 3.36- and 2.45-fold between most susceptible and tolerant populations. Anthranilic diamides showed significant correlations between log LC50 values among themselves, suggesting a high risk of cross-resistance. However, the log LC50 values of T. absoluta to phthalic diamide did not show any correlation with anthranilic diamides. Cytochrome- P450-dependent monooxygenase activity showed a weak correlation with log LC50 values of T. absoluta populations to anthranilic diamides, which suggests a potential route for evolving resistance to anthranilic diamides. CONCLUSION The diamides were highly effective against T. absoluta, with populations showing a homogeneous response to them. Cross-resistance is very likely between anthranilic diamides in T. absoluta. Populations of this pest may evolve resistance by increasing cytochrome- P450-dependent monooxygenases. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry

Chemical control with herbicides, especially glyphosate, is the main method used to control ryegrass. However, the repeated use of glyphosate has selected resistant ryegrass biotypes. Thus, the ACCase inhibitor herbicides have become the main alternative to control glyphosate-resistant biotypes, being widely used by farmers in Rio Grande do Sul. Repeated use of ACCase inhibitors, in turn, have selected ryegrass biotypes resistant to this herbicide mechanism. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the response of ryegrass biotypes to different clethodim rates by dose-response curves. Increasing doses (0, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96, 144 and 192 g a.i. ha-1) of the herbicide clethodim were applied at the 3-4 ryegrass leaf stage. The variables control at 14 and 28 days after treatment (DAT) and shoot dry weight were evaluated. The data were fitted by nonlinear regression log-logistic and C50 and GR50 were calculated based on the equation. The resistance factor was obtained by the ratio of C50 or GR50 of the resistant biotype by matching the susceptible biotype. Based on the equation parameters, the doses of GR50 64.7 and 234.5 g a.i. ha-1 clethodim and C50 11.2 and 172.1 g a.i. ha-1 clethodim were obtained, at 28 DAT for the susceptible and resistant biotypes, respectively. The ryegrass biotype denominated Cotril is resistant to clethodim, being controlled with a dose 15.3 times greater than that of the susceptible biotype, and a 50% reduction of this biotype occurs with a dose 3.62 times higher than that of the susceptible one.

The cotton leaf worm, Alabama argillacea , is a key cotton pest in Brazil and is managed with repeated insecticide applications. Reports of insecticide control failures have recently increased, particularly with pyrethroids. The present work assessed the resistance status of A. argillacea to a number of different insecticides currently used in cotton crops. Bioassays were conducted to estimate the response of 2nd-instar A. argillacea populations to deltamethrin, chlorpyrifos, endosulfan, abamectin and spinosad. A leaf dip bioassay with diluted insecticide formulations was performed in the laboratory with five to nine populations depending on the insecticide. LC 50 values were estimated by probit analysis after correction for control mortality data and used to calculate the resistance ratios (RR). All assessed populations exhibited varied and significant levels of resistance to all insecticides tested, but only moderate levels of resistance to deltamethrin were observed (RR = 52.3). The LC 50 values for deltamethrin were higher than 30 mg/l for most populations, and above the field rate (12.5 mg/l). This suggests that the frequency of resistant individuals in these populations was likely above the critical frequency. There was low to moderate resistance to abamectin, chlorpyrifos, endosulfan and spinosad formulations (the highest RRs observed were 4.2, 8.4, 11.1 and 23.5, respectively). Despite the moderate levels of resistance to pyrethroids in A. argillacea , overall results indicate the presence of low to moderate resistance of A. argillacea to insecticides currently used against cotton pests in Brazil.

The Relative Dose Response Test (RDR) was used to assess the bioavailability of vitamin A in a stabilized form in artificially produced rice kernels. The vitamin A proved stable to storage and cooking, and the enriched rice was nontoxic, and had the same sensory characteristics of ordinary rice. The nutrified rice, cooked with sugar and milk, was offered to 83 deprived children as the challenge dose for an RDR test. The children showed positive and negative tests in agreement with their serum retinol levels. The regression of RDR on serum retinol levels was the same as that observed when the conventional RDR test was applied.