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Published:
Dec 18, 1992Keywords:
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Antifeedant Effect of Jatropha Curcas L. Seed Oil and Extracts on the Variegated Grasshopper, Zono Cerus Variegatus L. (Orthoptera: Acrididae)
Abstract
Studies were done to determine the effect of Jatropha curcas L. seed oil and various solvent extracts on survival and feeding rates of the variegated grasshopper, Zonoccrus variegatus L. in the laboratory. Although J. curcas seed emulsion was less effective when compared with 0.05% Cymbush (a synthetic pyrethroid), it nevertheless reduced the damage caused by Z. varieties to cassava foliage (Manihot esctilenta Crantz). The level of feeding suppression achieved with J. curcas extract (42.9 I %) was, however, similar to neem extract (40.89%) at 5% significance level. The hexane extract, which gave the highest activity among the four solvent systems used in the extraction of J. curcas seeds, was separated into four fractions by column chromatography. Physicochemical characteristics of the most active fraction including iodine number, saponification number, infra-red spectrum, boiling point, refractive index were determined. A complex of functional groups were indicated. Further purification and spectroscopic analyses are required to establish the structure(s) of the bioactive components in the seed.
