Dynamics of novel insecticide HNPC-A9908 residue in vegetable-field ecosystem.

HNPC-A9908 (o-(3-phenoxybenzyl)-2-methylthio-l-(4-chlorophenyl) propyl ketone oxime), a novel oxime insecticide, is a highly effective and broad-spectrum insecticide which can be widely used to control many species of foliar insects on various crops. A study was conducted to evaluate the fate of HNPC-A9908 and study the degradation dynamics of HNPC-A9908 residue in vegetable field ecosystem. The results showed that degradation of HNPC-A9908 was much faster in vegetable pakchoi than in soil, and its half-life in pakchoi and soil was 1.32 and 3.75 d, respectively. The final residue of HNPC-A9908 in pakchoi was at the undetectable level to 0.122 mg/kg. As a conclusion, a dosage of 90 g/hm(2) was suggested and considered to be safe to human beings and animals.

Biodegradation of imazapyr in typical soils in Zhejiang Province, China.

The degradation of imazapyr in non-sterile and sterile soils from four sampling sites in Zhejiang, China was studied. The results showed that the half-lives of imazapyr in non-sterile soils were in the range of 30 to 45 d, while 81 to 133 d in sterile (by autoclaving) soils. It means the rate constants of imazapyr under non-sterile conditions were 2.3-4.4 times faster than that under sterile (by autoclaving) conditions, evidently indicating that the indigenous microorganisms in soil play an important role in the degradation of imazapyr. The different sterilization methods could result in different degradation rates of imazapyr. The heat of sterilization of soil largely decreased the degradation. However, the sterile treatment of soil by sodium azide had a different effect from that by autoclaving. Further more, the mechanism was also discussed. Biodegradation in four non-sterile soils accounted for 62% to 78% of imazapyr degradation. In contrast, less than 39% of imazapyr degradation was associated with chemical mechanisms. Therefore, the degradation mechanism was predominantly involved in biology including organisms and microorganisms in soil. Two imazapyr-degrading bacterial strains were isolated in enrichment culture technique and they were identified as Pseudomonas fluorescenes biotype II (ZJX-5) and Bacillus cereus (ZJX-9), respectively. When added at a concentration of 50 microg/g in mineral salts medium (MSM), ZJX-5 and ZJX-9 could degrade 81% and 87% imazapyr after 48 h of incubation. For the treatment of incorporation of ZJX-5 or ZJX-9 into soil, the degradation rate enhanced 3-4 fold faster than that for control samples, which showed an important value in quick decontamination of imazapyr in soil.

Dissipation of chlorpyrifos on pakchoi inside and outside greenhouse.

The dissipation of chlorpyrifos on pakchoi inside and outside greenhouse was studied. The decline curve of chlorpyrifos on pakchoi could be described as first-order kinetic. The experimental data showed that both the hermetic environment of greenhouse and season affected dissipation rates of chlorpyrifos on pakchoi. Chlorpyrifos declined faster outside greenhouse than inside greenhouse. Chlorpyrifos residues at pre-harvest time were below the maximum residue limits (MRLs) fixed in China, whereas the values inside greenhouse were higher than those outside greenhouse by almost 50%. The recommended pre-harvest time established under conditions of open field might not always fit to greenhouse production.

Fungal degradation of metsulfuron-methyl in pure cultures and soil.

A fungal strain capable of utilizing metsulfuron-methyl as sole carbon and energy sources was isolated from a metsulfuron-methyl treated soil. The degradation characteristics of metsulfuron-methyl by this fungal strain were investigated in liquid culture and soil. More than 79% of metsulfuron-methyl at concentrations of 0.10 mgl(-1), 1.0 mgl(-1) and 10.0 mgl(-1) in pure culture was degraded by strain MD after incubation for 7 days, whereas only 5.6%, 8.6% and 13.1% of metsulfuron-methyl were degraded at levels of 0.10 mgl(-1), 1.0mgl(-1) and 10.0 mgl(-1) in the controls, respectively. The incorporation of strain MD into soil was found to substantially increase the degradation of metsulfuron-methyl. Degradation was 7.5 and 3.8 times faster in strain MD amended soils than in sterilized and fresh soils. The results show that addition of the isolated strain MD enhances degradation of metsulfuron-methyl in water and soil.

Correlation between biochemical parameters and susceptibility of freshwater fish to malathion.

Acute toxicity (96-h LC50) of malathion was tested using five species of freshwater fish, namely, topmouth gudgeon (Pseudorasbora parva), goldfish (Carassius auratus), nile tilapia (Tilapia nilotica), mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis), and rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri). Correlation was found between susceptibility and biochemical parameters such as activity of brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and in vitro resistance of the enzyme to inhibition (IC50) of malaoxon (a major metabolite of malathion). The in vitro study also showed that malaoxon instead of malathion was the main inhibitor of AChE. Susceptibility to malathion was considerably changed as the fish was pretreated with piperonyl butoxide (PB, a P-450 inhibitor) and triphenyl phosphate (TPP, an inhibitor of carboxylesterase), respectively. Toxicity of malathion was significantly increased by TPP, but the responses of fish to PB were quite different among species. This suggested that both carboxylesterase and monooxygenase played an important role in susceptibility determination, and great variations existed among species in activity of monooxygenase.