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Agronomy
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Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop...
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Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Pest and Disease Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2021) | Viewed by 17536

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Beatriz Gámiz

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agrochemistry and Soil Conservation, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
Interests: environmental impact assessment; soil science; pesticides;

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In modern agriculture, the use of synthetic pesticides is required to achieve an adequate crop yield. Nevertheless, their repeated applications also comprise damage to non-target organisms and the consequent reduction of soil biodiversity and environmental problems. For these reasons, the present economic and political environment is furthering opportunities for the use of low-concern natural products from plants and microorganisms in agriculture for the development of biopesticides.

The application of biopesticides is progressively encouraged because of its advantages associated with better environmental safety, target-specificity reducing pest resistance, and high biodegradability. Therefore, biopesticides may play an important role in the implementation of integrated pest management (IPM), being an alternative or complement for traditional synthetic crop protection products. The current market for biopesticides represents only 5% of the total crop protection products, although an annual growth of 10% is estimated. Key challenges for future research and commercialization of biopesticides include the identification and determination of their mode of actions, development of efficient stabilization processes, and optimization of their bioavailability and soil behavior for a complete overview in the environment. Current information in this regard is still lacking.

This Special Issue will focus on “Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production”. We welcome novel research, reviews, and opinion pieces regarding naturally occurring substances as potential biopesticides, covering all related topics including policy positions, identification, extraction and analytical methods, mode of actions, dynamic in soils counting, sorption, bioavailability and mobility, effects on the diversity of soil microbial community, and novel formulations. Field trials are exceptionally valuable.

Dr. Beatriz Gámiz
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • allelochemicals
  • biocontrol agents
  • bioavailability
  • integrated pest management
  • low risks substances
  • natural products
  • novel pesticides
  • signaling compounds
  • soil biochemistry

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 4963 KiB  
Article
Inhibition of the Growth and Development of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) De Bary by Combining Azoxystrobin, Penicillium chrysogenum VKM F-4876d, and Bacillus Strains
by Vera V. Yaderets, Nataliya V. Karpova, Elena V. Glagoleva, Alexander I. Ovchinnikov, Kseniya S. Petrova and Vakhtang V. Dzhavakhiya
Agronomy 2021, 11(12), 2520; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11122520 - 11 Dec 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5521
Abstract
Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary is a plant pathogen with a wide host range, which causes significant yield and storage losses of edible roots and other plant products. Due to its ability to sclerotia formation, the efficient control of this pathogen is complicated. [...] Read more.
Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary is a plant pathogen with a wide host range, which causes significant yield and storage losses of edible roots and other plant products. Due to its ability to sclerotia formation, the efficient control of this pathogen is complicated. The study of five Bacillus strains (B. subtilis VKM B-3154D, VKM B-3155D, VKM B-3505D, VKM B-2998D, and B. amyloliquefaciens VKM B-3153D) showed their ability to produce polyene antibiotics suppressing the growth and development of plant pathogenic fungi. The maximum concentration of polyene compounds was revealed for B. subtilis VKM B-2998D. A high in vitro antifungal activity of a dry mycelium biomass (DMP) of Penicillium chrysogenum VKM F-4876D, B. subtilis VKM B-2998D, and their combination has been demonstrated in relation to S. sclerotiorum. A combined application of DMP (0.3 g/L) and azoxystrobin at low dosage (2.5 mg/L) showed a high suppressing activity towards S. sclerotiorum (100% growth inhibition) including inhibition of a sclerotia formation that may be useful for the development of efficient methods of crop protection against this plant pathogen. A high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of DMP revealed the presence of mevastatin suggesting the mechanism of the DMP antifungal activity is based on the blocking of the ergosterol (the main component of fungal cell walls) biosynthesis. The results of the study provide a prerequisite to the development of biopreparations to control S. sclerotiorum, whose use may provide a reduction of concentrations of fungicides used in agriculture and the corresponding reduction of their negative xenobiotic impact on the environment and recovery of the ecological balance in the soil. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production)
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27 pages, 3176 KiB  
Article
Agave Steroidal Saponins as Potential Bioherbicides
by Alexandra G. Durán, Javier Benito, Francisco A. Macías and Ana M. Simonet
Agronomy 2021, 11(12), 2404; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11122404 - 25 Nov 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3815
Abstract
Agave saponins are a valuable resource for the prospective development of new forms of agrochemicals. The extraction method was optimized and applied to 17 Agave species. Thirteen saponin fractions (SFs) were assayed on wheat etiolated coleoptiles, and analysed using UPLC-QTOF-MSE, NMR [...] Read more.
Agave saponins are a valuable resource for the prospective development of new forms of agrochemicals. The extraction method was optimized and applied to 17 Agave species. Thirteen saponin fractions (SFs) were assayed on wheat etiolated coleoptiles, and analysed using UPLC-QTOF-MSE, NMR spectroscopy and the HMBC method for aglycone identification (HMAI). Six SFs were assayed on standard target species (STS) and weeds. The new extraction method reduces costs to obtain SFs with the same activity. The tested SFs assayed on etiolated wheat coleoptiles that belong to the subgenus Agave were among those with the highest activity levels. The combination of HMAI together with UPLC-MS allowed the identification of 20 aglycones in the SFs, and no isolation or hydrolysis of the saponins was required. A Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed that for the active SFs the structural key would be the length of their sugar chain. The presence of a carbonyl group at C-12 implied an enhancement in phytotoxic activity. Six SFs were assayed on seeds, and no activity on Solanum lycopersicum (tomato) was observed; however, good activity profiles were obtained on weed E. crus-galli (IC50 < 80 ppm), better than the commercial herbicide Logran®. These findings represent a possible lead for the development of natural herbicides through the use of saponins of subgenus Agave species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production)
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16 pages, 1570 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Conjugate Complexes of Chitosan and Urtica dioica or Equisetum arvense Extracts for the Control of Grapevine Trunk Pathogens
by Natalia Langa-Lomba, Laura Buzón-Durán, Pablo Martín-Ramos, José Casanova-Gascón, Jesús Martín-Gil, Eva Sánchez-Hernández and Vicente González-García
Agronomy 2021, 11(5), 976; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11050976 - 14 May 2021
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4452
Abstract
In the work presented herein, we analyze the efficacy of three basic substances that comply with European Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009, namely chitosan, horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) and nettle (Urtica dioica L.), for the control of grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs) in [...] Read more.
In the work presented herein, we analyze the efficacy of three basic substances that comply with European Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009, namely chitosan, horsetail (Equisetum arvense L.) and nettle (Urtica dioica L.), for the control of grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs) in organic farming. The E. arvense and U. dioica aqueous extracts, prepared according to SANCO/12386/2013 and SANTE/11809/2016, have been studied by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS), identifying their main active constituents. The three basic substances, either alone or in combination (forming conjugate complexes), have been tested in vitro against eight Botryosphaeriaceae species, and in vivo, in grafted plants artificially inoculated with Neofusicoccum parvum and Diplodia seriata. A clear synergistic behavior between chitosan and the two plant extracts has been observed in the mycelial growth inhibition tests (resulting in EC90 values as low as 208 μg·mL−1 for some of the isolates), and statistically significant differences have been found in terms of vascular necroses lengths between treated and non-treated plants, providing further evidence of aforementioned synergism in the case of D. seriata. The reported data supports the possibility of extending the applications of these three basic substances in Viticulture beyond the treatment of mildew. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production)
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12 pages, 8236 KiB  
Article
Absorption and Elimination of the Allelochemical MBOA by Weeds during Seedling Growth
by Alberto Oliveros-Bastidas, José M. G. Molinillo, Francisco A. Macias and Nuria Chinchilla
Agronomy 2021, 11(3), 471; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11030471 - 4 Mar 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2336
Abstract
6-Methoxy-2-benzoxazolinone (MBOA) is an allelochemical that is found in Poaceae and is generally associated with monocotyledon species. This compound is formed from the glycosylated form of 2,4-dihydroxy-(2H)-1,4-benzoxazin-3(4H)-one (Gly-DIMBOA) by a two-stage degradation process. The MBOA detoxification capacity of two [...] Read more.
6-Methoxy-2-benzoxazolinone (MBOA) is an allelochemical that is found in Poaceae and is generally associated with monocotyledon species. This compound is formed from the glycosylated form of 2,4-dihydroxy-(2H)-1,4-benzoxazin-3(4H)-one (Gly-DIMBOA) by a two-stage degradation process. The MBOA detoxification capacity of two weed species, namely Echinochloa crus-galli and Lolium rigidum, and a resistant biotype of Lolium rigidum (SLR31) was studied both qualitatively and quantitatively. The product of metabolism is similar for both weed species. This finding indicates that these weeds probably metabolize xenobiotics by an identical route, since the product detected was the same in both cases. Kinetic studies on the absorption and translocation to the shoot showed differences in these processes depending on the species. The analysis of treated plants, which were subsequently transplanted to a growth medium without xenobiotic compound, showed that the weeds studied are capable of transmitting the previously absorbed compound to the medium by root exudation. The results show that this process is another defense mechanism of plants facing external threats. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential of Biopesticides to Optimize Pest Control in Sustainable Crop Production)
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