Insecticidal effect of ethanolic extract from Zizyphus lotus L. against Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Nacéra TADJINE

Author: Nacéra TADJINE

Laboratory of Biotechnology of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Blida-1 University, Algeria

naceratadjine@yahoo.fr

Abstract

The study aims to determine the chemical composition of the ethanolic extract of Z. lotus L. leaves, as well as to evaluate its effectiveness in combating Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), a pest of stored products. Rutin, robin, kaempferol, and apigenin have been identified as the main constituents of Z. lotus L. The tested ethanolic extract showed pronounced insecticidal activity against this harmful species, proportionally to the applied doses. The ethanolic extract of Z. lotus L. demonstrated high efficacy in the various treatments tested on T. castaneum. Regarding contact and fumigation assessments, the ethanolic extract of Z. lotus L. induced corrected mortality rates ranging from 37.5% to 100% in T. castaneum, with corresponding lethal concentrations (LC50) of 13.9 µl/ml and 16.9 µl/l of air, respectively, during contact and fumigation evaluations. Our results indicate that the ethanolic extract of Z. lotus L. exhibits very promising insecticidal activity against T. castaneum. The topical toxicity recorded ID10 and ID50 values of 1.45 and 2.77 µg per adult. These results clearly show that the ethanolic extract of Z. lotus L. has great potential for the development of new botanical insecticides as safe alternatives for controlling harmful insects.