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Tebufenozide
effects on the reproductive potentials of the mediterranean
flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella
Khebbeb, M.
E. H.*, Gaouaoui, R. and Bendjeddou, F.
Laboratoire de Biologie Animale Appliquée, Département
de Biologie, Université Badji Mokhtar, BP12, 23000 Annaba,
Algérie.
*Corresponding author. E-mail:
hadikhebbeb@yahoo.fr
or
elhadi.khebbeb@univ-annaba.org.
Tel/ Fax: +21338875400. Mobil : +21370310037.
Accepted 11 March, 2008 |
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The Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia Kuehniella
Zeller (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is an important pest in
stored products worldwide, and is one of the major pests in
flour mills in Algeria. Because of environmental
consideration, alternative approaches to neurotoxic
insecticides, as well as safe, effective, and sound
integrated pest management strategies pest control agents
such as the insect growth regulator (IGRs) was developed.
Among these IGRs, the bisacylhydrazine derivatives are
nonsteroidal ecdysteroid agonists that mimic the action of
moulting hormones and induce a precocious and incomplete
moult in several insect orders. The reproductive potentials
of adult E. kuehniella under laboratory
conditions were evaluated using topical bioassays of an
ecdysteroid agonist, RH-5992 (Tebufenozide), on pupae of
E. kuehniella. This compound reduced the pupae
development period with a dose response relationship. Data
showed that tebufenozide, topically applied on newly exuvied
pupae, significantly affected reproductive parameters in
adults such as fecundity, fertility, egg laying period and
embryonic duration of development. In addition, length and
width of eggs were also reduced by tebufenozide treatment.
Moreover, these parameters were affected more when males
treated with pesticide (Tebufenozide) were mated with
untreated females or treated males and treated females were
mated than when treated females were mated with untreated
males and when both males and females were untreated. In a
second series of experiment, tebufenozide, topically applied
on newly emerged pupae, was evaluated on weight and
biochemical composition of gonads of newly emerged adults.
Results showed a drastic decrease of gonadic weight and
carbohydrate and lipid contents in testicles and ovaries,
but, only protein contents of testicles were decreased by
tebufenozide treatment. Thus, it seemed that males should be
more sensitive than females to tebufenozide treatment.
Keywords:
Tebufenozide, reproductive potential, gonads, Ephestia
kuehniella. |
