Acetylcholinesterase in selected plant-parasitic nematodes: Inhibition, kinetic and comparative studies

Abstract

The in vitro inhibition potency of some organophosphates (OPs) and carbamates (CAs) which are widely used to control plant-parasitic nematodes on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) of Meloidogyne javanica, Heterodera avenae and Tylenchulus semipenetrans, the major pathogens responsible for the damage of a wide range of crops in Al-Qassim region, Saudi Arabia was examined. AChE of H. avenae activity was 1.58- and 1.51-fold greater than that of T. semipenetrans or M. javanica, respectively. The order of inhibition potency of the tested compounds against T. semipenetrans AChE was: carbofuran > paraoxon > oxamyl > fenamiphos > phorate-sulfoxide > aldicarb, where the corresponding concentrations that inhibited 50% of the nematode AChE activity (I 50) were 5 × 10 −8, 7 × 10 −7, 7.5 × 10 −7, 2 × 10 −6, 2 × 10 −4 and 2 × 10 −3 M, respectively. Paraoxon, fenamiphos and carbofuran exhibited high inhibition potency against M. javanica AChE where the I 50 values were below 1 nM. Phorate-sulfoxide and aldicarb were potent inhibitors of M. javanica AChE with I 50 values of 3.8 and 8 nM, respectively, while oxamyl exhibited low inhibition potency with I 50 of 15 nM. Fenamiphos and paraoxon showed the highest I 50 values of <100 μM against H. avenae followed by oxamyl (I 50 < 1 mM), whereas paraoxon, carbofuran and aldicarb showed low potency with I 50 values >1 mM. All the tested compounds exhibited high inhibition potency to AChE of M. javanica than T. semipenetrans or H. avenae. Except phorate-sulfoxide in M. javanica the inhibition pattern and implied mechanism for all the tested compounds for the three nematodes is suggested to be a linear mixed type (a combination of competitive and non-completive type).