Current status and future perspectives of the use of insect growth regulators for the control of stored product insects

Abstract

The control of stored product insects with insect growth regulators (IGRs) was heralded in the 1970s as a potentially valuable alternative to the use of traditional insecticides. Initially, the IGRs included compounds that mimicked the insects' own juvenile hormone. Subsequently, chitin synthesis inhibitors and ecdysteroid agonists have been added to the list of available IGRs. Extensive laboratory studies have been conducted on the physiological and biochemical effects of IGRs on stored product insects. However, there has been less emphasis on developing practical applications of these materials for stored product insects in the past decade. There is a new imperative to examine IGRs for the protection of stored products which results from no longer having some earlier control measures available, and particularly by the potential loss of the use of methyl bromide by the end of the century. Therefore, it is clear that a fresh evaluation of the potential role of IGRs for the protection of stored products from insect infestation must be made. This paper examines the new generations of IGRs and new approaches to the application and usage of these materials. This research provides some new perspectives on the potential utilization of IGRs for the protection of post-harvest commodities.