Benzimidazole fungicide

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Chemical structure of benomyl Benomyl.png
Chemical structure of benomyl

Benzimidazole fungicides are a class of fungicides including benomyl, carbendazim (MBC), thiophanate-methyl, thiabendazole and fuberidazole. They can control many ascomycetes and basidiomycetes, but not oomycetes. They are applied to cereals, fruits, vegetables and vines, and are also used in postharvest handling of crops. [1]

The solubility of benzimidazole fungicides is low at physiological pH and becomes high at low pH. In plants, carbendazim, thiabendazole and fuberidazole are mobile, i.e. systemic, and benomyl and thiophanate-methyl are converted to carbendazim. [2] This conversion also occurs in soils and animals. [1] In soil and water, carbendazim is mainly degraded by microbes. They are metabolized through hydrolysis and photolysis in plants. [2] These fungicides kill cells during mitosis by distorting the mitotic spindle; β-tubulin, a protein important in forming the cytoskeleton, is targeted. [1] They mostly inhibit polymerization of β-tubulin by interacting with it directly, but other interactions also exist. [3]

Starting in the late 1960s, they were widely used to control fungal pathogens such as Botrytis cinerea , Cercospora , powdery mildew and eyespot. These systemic fungicides were very effective at first. Because there is only one target site, benzimidazole resistancefungicide resistance to this class – quickly became a serious problem. When they were the only fungicides used, pathogens became resistant after two to four seasons; when mixed with other fungicides, resistance developed more slowly. [3] Resistant genotypes with certain point mutations were selected. [4] Mutant pathogens resistant to one benzimidazole fungicide are usually resistant to all of them. [5] The F200Y and E198A,G,K mutations are the most common. Because of resistance problems, use of benzimidazole fungicides has declined. They are suspected to be toxic to animals, including humans. [1] The Fungicide Resistance Action Committee lists them as having a high risk of resistance evolution. [6]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azoxystrobin</span> Chemical compound

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Red thread disease is a fungal infection found on lawns and other turfed areas. It is caused by the corticioid fungus Laetisaria fuciformis and has two separate stages. The stage that gives the infection its name is characterised by very thin, red, needle-like strands extending from the grass blade. These are stromata, which can remain viable in soil for two years. After germinating, the stromata infect grass leaf blades through their stomata. The other stage is visible as small, pink, cotton wool-like mycelium, found where the blades meet. It is common when both warmth and humidity are high.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thiophanate-methyl</span> Chemical compound

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Colletotrichum coffeanum is a species of fungal plant pathogen affecting mainly the species Coffea arabica and occasionally other species of the genus Coffea. Upon infection, the pathogen can cause coffee berry disease (CBD) which is also known as Brown Blight when it occurs on younger fruits still green in color. The fungus was first reported in Kenya in 1922, and is found throughout most of Africa. C. coffeanum is only found in Africa, but other species of Colletotrichum can be found throughout the rest of the world.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Oliver, Richard; Hewitt, H. G. (2014). Fungicides in Crop Protection (2 ed.). CABI. pp. 85–87. ISBN   9781780641669.
  2. 1 2 Roberts, Terry; Hutson, David, eds. (2007). Metabolic Pathways of Agrochemicals: Part 2: Insecticides and Fungicides. Royal Society of Chemistry. pp. 1106–1109, 1121. ISBN   9781847551375.
  3. 1 2 Leadbeater, Al (2014). "Plant Health Management: Fungicides and Antibiotics". In van Alfen, Neal K. (ed.). Encyclopedia of Agriculture and Food Systems. Vol. 4. Elsevier. p. 415. ISBN   9780080931395.
  4. Zhou, Ming-guo; Jia, Xiao-jing (2015). "Wheat Pathogens in China". In Ishii, Hideo; Hollomon, Derek William (eds.). Fungicide Resistance in Plant Pathogens. Springer. p. 315. ISBN   9784431556428.
  5. Georgopoulos, S. G. (1977). "Pathogens Become Resistant to Chemicals". In Horsfall, James G.; Cowling, Ellis B. (eds.). Plant Disease: An Advanced Treatise. Vol. 1. Academic Press. p. 330.
  6. "FRAC Code List" (PDF). FRAC. 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2017.