Background: The insecticides spinosad and deltamethrin are being increasingly used in pest management programmes. In order to assess further their toxic effects to target and non-target insect species, an evaluation was made of their insecticidal profile on Bactrocera oleae (Rossi) and Drosophila melanogaster (Meig.). Moreover, possible genotoxic effects of the two pesticides were investigated using the somatic mutation and recombination test (SMART) in D. melanogaster.
Results: Both insecticides were highly effective against B. oleae, exhibiting similar LC(50) values. Moreover, they were found to be more effective against Bactrocera than against Drosophila adults. However, spinosad was significantly more toxic than deltamethrin to D. melanogaster. The results showed a lack of genotoxic activity of both insecticides under the in vivo experimental procedure employed, at least at applied doses.
Conclusion: The present study provides information for lethal and sublethal effects of spinosad and deltamethrin against a target and a non-target species. Both insecticides can exert high toxicity to B. oleae when adults are exposed even to very low doses for long periods of time. The results contribute to the database on the genotoxic potential of spinosad and deltamethrin, suggesting a safety profile for both insecticides.
Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.