A toxicology based research article on Agricultural and Medicinal practices

Title: Lethal efficacy of indoor ornamental plant Aglaonema marantifolium (Schott.) against three economically important stored product pests Callosobruchus chinensis (L.), Sitophilus oryzae (L.) and Tribolium castaneum (HBST.)

Author(s): Alimul Islam, Tandid Kamal, Monoar Hosen, Nazia Sharmin, Shahadat Hossain and Nurul Islam*

Abstract

Petroleum ether (Pet. ether), chloroform (CHCl₃) and methanol (CH₃OH) extracts of the test plant Aglaonema marantifolium (Schott.) have been subjected to dose-mortality and repellent activity tests against adult beetles of Callosobruchus chinensis (L.), Sitophillus oryzae (L.) and Tribolium castaneum (HBST.). The Pet. ether extract of A. marantifolium gave the LD₅₀ values 1.04, 0.91, 0.87, 0.83, 0.80, 0.78 and 0.77mg/cm² against S. oryzae; 1.34, 1.19, 1.14, 1.12, 1.07, 1.03 and 1.02mg/cm² against T. castaneum; and the CH₃OH extract gave the LD₅₀ values 2.34, 2.15, 1.93, 1.86, 1.83, 1.82 and 1.81mg/cm² against C. chinensis after 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36 and 42h of exposures respectively. The CHCl₃ extract did not show any mortality against all the three test insects. In repellency tests, the CHCl₃ extract was found to show significant repellent activity against the adult beetles of C. chinensis at 5% level of significance (P<0.05). However, Pet. ether and CH₃OH extracts of A. marantifolium did not show repellent activity against any of the three test beetles.