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      Plant Allelochemicals as Sources of Insecticides

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          Abstract

          Simple Summary

          Due to the banning of many synthetic pesticides, current intensive farming systems require us to develop new approaches to integrated pest management. Devastating pests rarely occur in the wild and medicinal plants because of effective defense mechanisms. In contrast, only some of these defense mechanisms are found in cultivated crops. Biocidal compounds, derived from various wild and medicinal plants, are bioactive, biodegradable and constitute an ecological method for the successful management of insect pests. Therefore, an extensive study of various wild crops and some weeds is essential to identify new and potential plant species with insecticidal compounds.

          Abstract

          In this review, we describe the role of plant-derived biochemicals that are toxic to insect pests. Biotic stress in plants caused by insect pests is one of the most significant problems, leading to yield losses. Synthetic pesticides still play a significant role in crop protection. However, the environmental side effects and health issues caused by the overuse or inappropriate application of synthetic pesticides forced authorities to ban some problematic ones. Consequently, there is a strong necessity for novel and alternative insect pest control methods. An interesting source of ecological pesticides are biocidal compounds, naturally occurring in plants as allelochemicals (secondary metabolites), helping plants to resist, tolerate or compensate the stress caused by insect pests. The abovementioned bioactive natural products are the first line of defense in plants against insect herbivores. The large group of secondary plant metabolites, including alkaloids, saponins, phenols and terpenes, are the most promising compounds in the management of insect pests. Secondary metabolites offer sustainable pest control, therefore we can conclude that certain plant species provide numerous promising possibilities for discovering novel and ecologically friendly methods for the control of numerous insect pests.

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          Most cited references167

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          Crop losses to pests

          E-C Oerke (2005)
          The Journal of Agricultural Science, 144(1), 31-43 ["Productivity of crops grown for human consumption is at risk due to the incidence of pests, especially weeds, pathogens and animal pests. Crop losses due to these harmful organisms can be substantial and may be prevented, or reduced, by crop protection measures. An overview is given on different types of crop losses as well as on various methods of pest control developed during the last century.", "Estimates on potential and actual losses despite the current crop protection practices are given for wheat, rice, maize, potatoes, soybeans, and cotton for the period 2001–03 on a regional basis (19 regions) as well as for the global total. Among crops, the total global potential loss due to pests varied from about 50% in wheat to more than 80% in cotton production. The responses are estimated as losses of 26–29% for soybean, wheat and cotton, and 31, 37 and 40% for maize, rice and potatoes, respectively. Overall, weeds produced the highest potential loss (34%), with animal pests and pathogens being less important (losses of 18 and 16%). The efficacy of crop protection was higher in cash crops than in food crops. Weed control can be managed mechanically or chemically, therefore worldwide efficacy was considerably higher than for the control of animal pests or diseases, which rely heavily on synthetic chemicals. Regional differences in efficacy are outlined. Despite a clear increase in pesticide use, crop losses have not significantly decreased during the last 40 years. However, pesticide use has enabled farmers to modify production systems and to increase crop productivity without sustaining the higher losses likely to occur from an increased susceptibility to the damaging effect of pests.", "The concept of integrated pest/crop management includes a threshold concept for the application of pest control measures and reduction in the amount/frequency of pesticides applied to an economically and ecologically acceptable level. Often minor crop losses are economically acceptable; however, an increase in crop productivity without adequate crop protection does not make sense, because an increase in attainable yields is often associated with an increased vulnerability to damage inflicted by pests."]
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            Lignin biosynthesis.

            The lignin biosynthetic pathway has been studied for more than a century but has undergone major revisions over the past decade. Significant progress has been made in cloning new genes by genetic and combined bioinformatics and biochemistry approaches. In vitro enzymatic assays and detailed analyses of mutants and transgenic plants altered in the expression of lignin biosynthesis genes have provided a solid basis for redrawing the monolignol biosynthetic pathway, and structural analyses have shown that plant cell walls can tolerate large variations in lignin content and structure. In some cases, the potential value for agriculture of transgenic plants with modified lignin structure has been demonstrated. This review presents a current picture of monolignol biosynthesis, polymerization, and lignin structure.
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              Plant defense against herbivores: chemical aspects.

              Plants have evolved a plethora of different chemical defenses covering nearly all classes of (secondary) metabolites that represent a major barrier to herbivory: Some are constitutive; others are induced after attack. Many compounds act directly on the herbivore, whereas others act indirectly via the attraction of organisms from other trophic levels that, in turn, protect the plant. An enormous diversity of plant (bio)chemicals are toxic, repellent, or antinutritive for herbivores of all types. Examples include cyanogenic glycosides, glucosinolates, alkaloids, and terpenoids; others are macromolecules and comprise latex or proteinase inhibitors. Their modes of action include membrane disruption, inhibition of nutrient and ion transport, inhibition of signal transduction processes, inhibition of metabolism, or disruption of the hormonal control of physiological processes. Recognizing the herbivore challenge and precise timing of plant activities as well as the adaptive modulation of the plants' metabolism is important so that metabolites and energy may be efficiently allocated to defensive activities.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: Academic Editor
                Role: Academic Editor
                Journal
                Insects
                Insects
                insects
                Insects
                MDPI
                2075-4450
                24 February 2021
                March 2021
                : 12
                : 3
                : 189
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Department for Biology and Pathology of Fish and Bees, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
                [2 ]Division of Agricultural Entomology, KVK-Kargil II, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Srinagar 191111, India; showketdar43@ 123456gmail.com
                Author notes
                [* ]Correspondence: ivana.tlak@ 123456vef.hr ; Tel.: +385-91-2390-041
                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4480-3599
                Article
                insects-12-00189
                10.3390/insects12030189
                7996276
                33668349
                197fba76-90be-415e-beb2-5146de76b934
                © 2021 by the authors.

                Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 20 December 2020
                : 12 February 2021
                Categories
                Review

                plant defense,allelochemicals,pesticides,insect herbivores,natural compounds

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