Reza Sadeghi; Mostafa Mirzaei; Asgar Ebadollahi; Arsalan Jamshidnia; Majid Ghorbani Javid
Abstract
Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella Hübner (Pyralidae) is one of the most important pests of storage products in Iran, which is controlled by chemical fumigants. The use of plant essential oils and their compounds can be a suitable alternative to conventional fumigants due to their low risks ...
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Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella Hübner (Pyralidae) is one of the most important pests of storage products in Iran, which is controlled by chemical fumigants. The use of plant essential oils and their compounds can be a suitable alternative to conventional fumigants due to their low risks to mammals. The present study invesrigates the mortality, inhibition of alpha-amylase enzyme, and the total protein content of Indian meal moth larvae (Plodia interpunctella (Hübner)) affected by saffron petal extract with high concentration of anthocyanin under experimental conditions. The concentrations have been 500, 690, 1000, 1380, and 2000 ppm, used against the fifth-instar larvae of the pest in four replications within 24 and 48 h. The lethal concentration to kill fifty percentage of larvae (LC50) by saffron petal extract after 24 and 48 hours is estimated to be 2244.950 and 1434.828 ppm, respectively. Alpha-amylase enzyme activity in the fifth instar larvae of Indian meal moth, treated by saffron petal extract, has been significantly different from the control. The highest activity of the alpha-amylase enzyme in pest larvae treated by saffron petal extract has been recorded with 83.1%, and the inhibitory rate of this enzyme has been 21.8%, which is significantly different from control. Also, the amount of protein in the larvae affected by this extract significantly differs from the control groups. Therefore, due to its fumigant toxicity and the alpha-amylase inhibitory activity of Indian meal moth larvae, saffron petal extract can be considered for additional researches on managing this pest based on an ecological principle.