New Formulations of Ethyl Formate to Control Internal Stages of Sitophilus oryzae

Abstract

Ethyl formate (EF) was tested in mixtures with natural products (NPs) as a fumigant against the internal stages of Sitophilus oryzae. These novel formulations of EF [EF:NPs = 9.0:1.0, (v/v)] were shown to be chemically stable for 1 month after initial mixing. Therefore, EF acts as a good solvent for various NPs having insecticidal activity. The toxicity of EF alone, and of the various EF formulations, was evaluated on each developmental stage at different concentrations and exposure times. The results show that the effect of EF alone, as compared with the various EF formulations, was similar or lower in the mixed age cultures (MAC) of S. oryzae after 6 hr of exposure. For the pupal stage of S. oryzae, EF + thujone showed increased toxicity (>20%) at both 6 hr of exposure at 67.4 mg/L, as well as at 24 hr of exposure at 37.6 mg/L. Also, EF + thujone, EF + menthone, and EF + carvone showed higher toxicities as compared to EF alone, on the pupal stage of S. oryzae after 24 hr of exposure at 37.6 mg/L. However, we couldn't find significant differences in the formulations in terms of their synergistic effects. The most significant result of this research was the ability to use EF as a solvent for the application of various natural materials as fumigants and/or protectants. Our continuing research is aimed at finding natural product formulations that possess enhanced toxicity with respect to the internal stages of stored grain pests, as well as low mammalian toxicity.