Investigação do efeito do extrato de flores de Moringa oleifera Lamarck (Moringaceae) na sobrevivência e atividade de enzimas digestivas de larvas de Plutella xylostella Linnaeus (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae)

Abstract

Plutella xylostella is a multiresistant agricultural pest that attacks brassica plantations in Brazil and worldwide. The use of natural products with insecticidal properties to control P. xylostella may be advantageous due to the higher degree of degradability and lower persistence of these compounds in the environment when compared with the effects of synthetic insecticides. Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae) is a pantropical tree that synthesizes proteins (lectins and trypsin inhibitor) whose insecticidal activity has been reported. In the present work, the M. oleifera flower extract containing trypsin inhibitor (MoFTI, M. oleifera flower trypsin inhibitor) was investigated for the presence of peptides resistant to hydrolysis by digestive proteases and effect on survival and protease activity from midgut of P. xylostella third instar larvae (L3). The flower extract showed a high molecular weight polypeptide, which was resistant to hydrolysis by larval gut proteases up to 270 min incubation, revealed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The larvae were sensitive to the treatment with the extract and the mortality curve revealed a dose dependent response following a polynomial order 2 regression with R2 = 0.99. The maximum mortality rate (60 ± 10%) of larvae was obtained for the extract at 2% (w/v). The adults who emerged from treatment with flower extract showed morphological alterations, including atrophy of the wings and inability to move. In addition, some insects were not able to abandon the cocoon after the end of the pupal phase. The total protease and trypsin-like activities from larval gut were reduced in 67.75 ± 0.64% and 65.83 ± 6.3% by the flower extract at 0.8% and 1%, respectively. Deterrent alimentary effect was not detected when the larvae were reared with cabbage discs treated with the extract at 0.5 and 1%. In conclusion, the M. oleifera flower extract is a larvicidal agent against P. xylostella by cause larval mortality and malformations in adult insects. The larvicidal effect of the flower extract may be linked to the inhibition of enzymes important for the digestive processes of P. xylostella.