Effects of Aflatoxin B1 and G1 on Three Insect Pests of Maize12

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
When several levels of aflatoxin B1 or G1 were fed to 2nd instars of the corn earworm, Heliothis zea (Boddie), the fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), and the European cornborer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner), weight was reduced from 0 to 96% compared with untreated larvae. A dose of 2.5 µg of aflatoxin B1 or G1 in 10 ml of diet was significantly more toxic than other doses to the 2nd instar of all test insect species and also was toxic to 5th-instar corn earworms. Aflatoxin had no detectable effect on the viability of eggs produced by treated insects. Overall, corn earworms seemed more susceptible to aflatoxin than the other insect species; and aflatoxin B1 seemed more toxic than aflatoxin G1. Natural populations of corn earworms in cornfields may be significantly reduced by larval feeding on contaminated grain.