Eficiência de um novo inseticida comercial para o controle do cascudinho dos aviários (Alphitobius diaperinus) (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) / Effectiveness of a new commercial insecticide for the control of the lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus) (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

O presente estudo foi realizado com o objetivo de avaliar em condições de laboratório e campo, a eficiência de um inseticida Teste (à base de cipermetrina, clorpirifós e citronela), no controle do cascudinho dos aviários (Alphitobius diaperinus). Em laboratório, o produto foi testado sobre insetos adultos, por meio de pulverização sobre os insetos (contato direto) e caminhamento sobre superfície tratada (contato indireto). Posteriormente, foi avaliado em condições de campo, em um aviário de frangos de corte. O produto foi eficiente, sendo comparável ao produto padrão, causando 100% de mortalidade em laboratório e reduzindo a população do aviário em 76%. Assim, o produto constitui-se em uma alternativa para o controle do cascudinho.

The present study was carried out with the objective to evaluate, under laboratory and field conditions, the effectiveness of the insecticide Test (based on cypermethrin, chlorpyrifos and citronellal), for the control of lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus). In the laboratory, the product was tested on adult insects, by spraying on the insects (direct contact) and by their walking on a treated surface (indirect contact). After this, it was evaluated in field conditions, in a poultry house. The product was effective, being comparable to the standard product, causing 100% of mortality in the laboratory and reducing the population in the poultry house by 76%. Thus, the product presents an alternative for the control of this pest.

Antimycobacterial activity of some Brazilian indigenous medicinal drinks

Tuberculosis (TB) is a very serious problem worldwide and the increasing number of multiple drugs resistant TB cases makes the search for new anti-TB drugs an urgent need. Indigenous knowledge about the use of native plants to treat illnesses has contributed to the discovery of new medicines. In this study, the antimycobacterial activity ofseven medicinal drinks was assessed: Ananas sativus (hydroalcoholic fruit extract), Aristolochia triangularis(aqueous and hydroalcoholic leaf, root and stem extracts), Bromelia antiacantha (hydroalcoholic fruit extract), Stryphnodendron adstringens (hydroalcoholic bark extract), Tabebuia ovellanedae (hydroalcoholic bark extract), Vernonia polyanthes (hydroalcoholic root extract), all used by the Vanuíre indigenous community in the treatment of respiratory diseases. The activity was evaluated by using a time-to-kill assay, in which Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv was cultured on Lowenstein-Jensen medium, after thirty minutes, one, three, six, twelve and twenty-four hours contact of the bacteria with each drink. Within half to one hour contact, the hydroalcoholic drinks of A. triangularis, S. adstringens, T. ovellanedae and V. polyanthes reduced the bacterial growth by 2 orders of magnitude in CFU/mL, and all bacterial growth was absent after three hours contact. In contrast, no mycobactericidal effect was detected in the aqueous extract of A. triangularis or in the hydroalcoholic beverages of A. sativus and B. antiacantha, even aftertwenty-four hours contact.

Platynota rostrana (Walker) (Tortricidae) and Phidotricha erigens Raganot (Pyralidae): artificial diet effects on biological cycle

The lepidopterans Platynota rostrana (Walker) (Tortricidae) and Phidotricha erigens Raganot (Pyralidae) have been found frequently in citrus groves in São Paulo State in recent years. Since in Brazil, the fertility cycle of these two species is largely unknown, as are details of the damage wrought by them in crops, this research studied these aspects of the two species, which were kept under laboratory conditions (temperature 25 ± 2 °C, 70 ± 10 percent RH, 14 h photophase) and on an artificial diet. The duration of the biological cycle (egg-adult) for P. rostrana was 38.3 days and total viability was 44.0 percent; for P. erigens these values were 32.5 days and 63.6 percent, respectively. Both species showed five larval instars. Females of P. rostrana laid an average of 308 eggs, whereas those of P. erigens laid an average of 106 eggs. In both species, female pupae were heavier than males. Male and female longevity for both species was nearly 10 days. Based on the data obtained, the artificial diet produced better results in P. rostrana than in P. erigens. If these species, which have the potential to reach pest status in the citrus groves of São Paulo State, could be reared on an artificial diet, research on their control by alternative methods would be easier.

Os lepidópteros Platynota rostrana (Walker) (Tortricidae) e Phidotricha erigens Raganot (Pyralidae) têm sido constatados com freqüência nos pomares cítricos do Estado de São Paulo, nos últimos anos. O objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar a biologia das duas espécies, em condições de laboratório (temperatura 25 ± 2 °C, UR. 70 ± 10 por cento e fotofase de 14 h) em dieta artificial, elaborar uma tabela de vida de fertilidade e descrever os danos causados no campo, devido ao desconhecimento destes aspectos biológicos dos referidos insetos no Brasil. A duração do ciclo biológico (ovo-adulto) de P. rostrana foi de 38,3 dias e a viabilidade total de 44,0 por cento, enquanto para P. erigens foi de 32,5 dias e 63,6 por cento, respectivamente. Ambas as espécies apresentaram cinco ínstares e as pupas de fêmeas foram mais pesadas do que as de machos. As fêmeas de P. rostrana colocaram, em média, 308 ovos e as de P. erigens 106 ovos. A longevidade de machos e fêmeas das duas espécies foi próxima de 10 dias. Pela tabela de vida de fertilidade concluiu-se que P. rostrana tem melhor desempenho em dieta artificial que P. erigens. É possível criar estas espécies em dieta artificial, facilitando o desenvolvimento de pesquisas relacionadas ao seu controle por métodos alternativos, caso elas assumam o status de pragas nos pomares de São Paulo.