Synthetic acylsugars and their effects on the control of arthropod pests

Abstract

One of the main problems facing agriculture is the loss of production as a result of the attack of agricultural pests. Alternative ways to work around this problem are being sought. There are substances called acylsugars that are naturally produced by the wild tomato species S. pennellii and affect arthropod pests. The objectives of this work were to synthesize two acylsugars and assess the biological effect of these on the arthropod pests Bemissia tabaci and Tetranycus urticae. The syntheses were performed via the reactions of glucose and sucrose (saccharose) with acetic anhydride using sodium acetate as the catalyst. The products of these reactions were sucrose octa-acetate and glucose penta-acetate, the structures of which were confirmed by spectroscopic techniques. In a resistance test against the mite, a linear correlation between the concentration of the synthesized substances, and the dislocation of the mite was obtained. A delay in the hatching of the arthropod eggs was observed, causing a mortality rate of approximately 95% in the 1st instar larvae of mites that was confirmed in adults. In the biological tests with Bemisia tabaci, there was a low rate of hatching and emergence, and the effect on the nymphs was the deformation of the emergent adults.