Toxicity of β -Nitropropionic Acid to Trichoplusia ni12

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Abstract
β -nitropropionic acid (BNPA) added to a pinto bean diet and fed to cabbage loopers, Trichoplusia ni (Hübner), increased the mortality of 1st instar larvae, the length of the larval and pupal periods, and the life span of male moths, but reduced pupal weights and fecundity. A mixture of glucose triesters, (coronillin and karakin) was less toxic than BNPA. A diester (cibarian) was the least toxic of the materials tested. All 3 compounds were isolated from leaves of crown vetch, Coronilla varia L., and are toxic to nonruminant animals. BNPA and its glucose esters may have adaptive significance as a feeding deterrent to insects that attempt to feed on crownvetch. Plant breeding programs designed to eliminate BNPA from crown vetch to make the forage nontoxic to nonruminants may accidentally produce an insect-susceptible cultivar.