Abstract:
Stored cereals, oilseeds, pulses, spices, dried fruits, tree nuts and their processed foods which are important for food and trade purposes, suffer economic and quality losses due to insect pest attack. Chemical insecticides play major role in insect pest elimination from stored products. Increase of problems concerning use of synthetic chemical insecticides, such as persistence of residues, resistance and damage to the environment as well as human health has generated interest in naturally occurring products. Essential oils may have attractive or repellent effects and insecticidal action against certain insect pests. It was found that these bioactive compounds are potentially toxic to insects but relatively safe to human. In recent years, several studies were reported on toxicity of Iranian plant essential oils from different families such as Alliaceae, Apiaceae, Asteraceae, Cupressaceae, Graminaceae, Lamiaceae, Lauraceae, Myrtaceae, Pedaliaceae, Rutaceae, Scrophulariaceae, Verbenaceae and Zingiberaceae against various insect species. Previous studies have also shown that toxicity of essential oils is related to the oil’s main components such as 1,8-cineole, thymol, eugenol, terpinene, limonene, α-pinene, carvacrol. Some of these oils and their constituent are widely used as flavoring agents in foods or considered as medicinal products. These advantages combined with wide availability of essential oils from flavor and fragrance industries have made it possible to commercialize of essential oil-based insecticides. Reports have indicated that isolated essential oils from Iranian plants and their major constituents are potential for utilization in insect pest management programs due to their availability, efficiency and safety to environment and non-target organisms.
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