Molecular toxinology research was initially driven by an interest in the small subset of animal toxins that are lethal to humans. However, the realization that many venomous creatures possess a complex repertoire of bioactive peptide toxins with potential pharmaceutical and agrochemical applications has led to an explosion in the number of new peptide toxins being discovered and characterized. Unfortunately, this increased awareness of peptide-toxin diversity has not been matched by the development of a generic nomenclature that enables these toxins to be rationally classified, catalogued, and compared. In this article, we introduce a rational nomenclature that can be applied to the naming of peptide toxins from spiders and other venomous animals.

No abstract

No abstract

Social insects present unique challenges to chemically based management strategies, especially because fast‐acting compounds commonly applied for many pest insects may not be the most effective for colony elimination. The reproductive caste of a colony is the most protected from direct damage by insecticides, and compounds that cause rapid mortality among foragers frequently do not impact the reproductive members or even markedly reduce overall colony size. With recent bans on persistent insecticides that previously have been used to control social insects, especially termites, new compounds must be used. Island and coastal ecosystems are particularly sensitive to the effects of widespread pesticide use and concerns about unintentional water pollution and runoff are common, and international attention is being paid to developing sustainable pesticide options for agricultural and urban pest insects in particularly sensitive environments. Given the precarious status of many native insects and arthropods care must be taken to minimize exposure to potentially harmful insecticides and the non‐target impacts of these chemicals. However, recent developments in the synthesis and discovery of highly selective insecticides with low mammalian and non‐target toxicity provide viable alternatives to the broad‐spectrum persistent organochlorine insecticides that have been largely deregistered. Novel technologies, particularly synthetic analogues of biologically active compounds, yield new chemical control options and management strategies for island and other sensitive ecosystems; case studies from Australia, the Galapagos Islands and New Zealand highlight current challenges and successes.

Controlling the Formosan subterranean termite, a cosmopolitan pest and the most structurally damaging pest in the state of Hawaii, is an important priority for homeowners and commercial builders alike. Boron-treated lumber is often part of an effective integrated pest management (IPM) strategy, owing to its effect of reducing attack by subterranean termites and preventing wood decay due to fungi and bacteria. Termites from field colonies maintained in Honolulu were collected and exposed to one of four composite boards: zinc borate (ZB)/disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (DOT) (boric acid equivalent or BAE 0.75%), anhydrous boric acid (B 2 O 3 ) (BAE 0.75%), or an untreated composite board control; after 5 days the wood pieces were replaced with untreated composite boards. The effect of 5 days of boron exposure was examined by comparing the wet weight of termites, wood consumption, survival, and termite boron content. The analyses at both 5 and 10 days revealed significantly more boron in the termites exposed to treated timber than those not exposed, and decreased weight in those termites exposed to borates. The general trend was for the ZB treatment to have less of an effect on the termites than the DOT treatment, while were both less harmful than boric acid in these experiments. The boron content of the exposed termites declined by 66-74% after 5 days of feeding on untreated wood, indicating that termites can excrete or metabolize ingested boron over time. This ability to recover from sublethal exposure to boron may explain the gradual avoidance of borate-treated wood noted by other authors, and has implications for the inclusion of borate-treated timber in an IPM programs for preventing infestation by subterranean termites.