Control of the Invasive Agricultural Pest Pomacea canaliculata with a Novel Molluscicide: Efficacy and Safety to Nontarget Species

Abstract

The golden apple snail Pomacea canaliculata is an invasive pest that causes extensive damage to agricultural production. P. canaliculata is also an intermediate host of Angiostrongylus cantonensis, which causes human eosinophilic meningitis. In this study, the molluscicidal activity and safety profile of a novel molluscicide PBQ [1-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(pyridin-3-yl)urea] were evaluated. PBQ exhibited strong molluscicidal potency against adult and juvenile snails (LC 50 values of 0.39 and 0.07 mg/L, respectively). In field trials, PBQ killed 99.42% of the snails at 0.25 g a.i./m 2 . An acute toxicity test in rats demonstrated that PBQ is a generally nonhazardous chemical. PBQ is also generally safe for nontarget organisms including Brachydanio rerio, Daphnia magna, and Apis mellifera L. Transcriptomics analysis revealed that PBQ had a significant impact on the carbohydrate and lipid metabolism pathways, which provided insights into its molluscicidal mechanism. These results suggest that PBQ could be developed as an effective and safe molluscicide for P. canaliculata control.

The Biosafety Evaluation for Crustaceans: A Novel Molluscicide PBQ Using against Oncomelania hupensis, the Intermediate Host of Schistosoma japonica

“…In recent years, the novel molluscicide PBQ showed excellent molluscicidal effects in laboratory experiments and field tests [ 15 ]. PBQ has the features of a simple structure, low cost of synthesis, and simple post-processing [ 14 ].…”

“…PBQ has the features of a simple structure, low cost of synthesis, and simple post-processing [ 14 ]. PBQ exhibited excellent molluscicidal activity against several kinds of freshwater snails, such as Pomacea canaliculate and Biomphalaria straminea [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]. Relatively weaker potency was observed in O. hupensis , probably due to its amphibious habitat and thicker shell [ 16 ].…”

“…A novel molluscicide PBQ [1-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(pyridin-3-yl)urea], developed by the National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Shanghai, China), exhibited strong molluscicidal potency against biomphalaria straminea ( B. straminea ) [ 14 ], Pomacea canaliculate ( P. canaliculata ) [ 15 ], and O. hupensis [ 16 ]. The exhibited molluscicidal potency of PBQ was similar to the niclosamide derivatives widely used now [ 14 , 16 ].…”

“…The exhibited molluscicidal potency of PBQ was similar to the niclosamide derivatives widely used now [ 14 , 16 ]. In addition, PBQ showed low toxicity to fish, Daphnia magna, and bees [ 14 , 15 , 16 ], suggesting its relative safety to non-target organisms. Due to the short development time of PBQ, there were few studies.…”

A Novel Gelatin-Based Sustained-Release Molluscicide for Control of the Invasive Agricultural Pest and Disease Vector Pomacea canaliculata

“…The estimated annual cost of controlling these snails using pesticides is approximately USD 300 million [4]. Therefore, P. canaliculata control will not only help to prevent invasion by this species and the transmission of A. cantonensis [5], but will also reduce the economic losses due to crop damage.…”