Characterization and evaluation of avermectin solid nanodispersion prepared by microprecipitation and lyophilisation techniques

PLoS One. 2018 Jan 23;13(1):e0191742. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0191742. eCollection 2018.

Abstract

Poorly water-soluble and photosensitive pesticide compounds are difficult to formulate as solvent-free nanoformulations with high efficacy. A avermectin solid nanodispersion with a mean particle size of 188 nm was developed by microprecipitation and lyophilisation techniques. The suspensibility and wetting time of the solid nanodispersion in water were 99.8% and 13 s, respectively, superior to those of conventional water dispersible granules and wettable powders. The anti-photolysis performance of the nanoformulation was twice that of the technical material, and the biological activity against diamondback moths was more than 1.5 times that of the conventional solid formulations while taking LC 50 as the evaluation index. Moreover, the formulation composition substantially decreased the surfactant content and avoided organic solvents. Microprecipitation combined with lyophilisation is an easy and promising method to construct solid nanoformulations for pesticides with poor water solubility and environmental sensitivity. The application of the highly effective solid nanodispersion in crop production will have a great potential in reducing chemical residues and environmental pollution.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biological Assay
  • Freeze Drying
  • Insecticides / chemistry*
  • Ivermectin / analogs & derivatives*
  • Ivermectin / chemistry
  • Nanotechnology
  • Solubility
  • Water / chemistry
  • Wettability

Substances

  • Insecticides
  • Water
  • Ivermectin
  • avermectin

Grants and funding

This research was supported by National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2017YFD0201207 and 2016YFD0200502). The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.