African Journal of
Biotechnology

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Biotechnol.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1684-5315
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJB
  • Start Year: 2002
  • Published Articles: 12501

Review

Nano-particles - A recent approach to insect pest control

Atanu Bhattacharyya1, Asim Bhaumik2, Pathipati Usha Rani3, Suvra Mandal4and Timothy T. Epidi5*
1Department of Zoology, Vidyasagar College For Women, 39, Sankar Ghosh Lane, Kolkata -700006, India. 2Department of Material Science, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Jadavpur, Kolkata-700032, India. 3Biology and Biotechnology Division, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Taranaka, Hyderabad 500 007 (AP), India. 4Department of Chemistry, Central Research Institute (Ayurveda) 4, C. N. Block, Sector- 5, Bidhannagar, Kolkata-700019, India. 5Department of Crop Production Technology, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, P.M.B. 071, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria.
Email: [email protected]

  •  Accepted: 26 February 2010
  •  Published: 14 June 2010

Abstract

 Nanotechnology, a promising field of research opens up in the present decade a wide array of opportunities in the present decade and is expected to give major impulses to technical innovations in a variety of industrial sectors in the future. The potential uses and benefits of nanotechnology are enormous. These include agricultural productivity enhancement involving nanoporous zeolites for slow release and efficient dosage of water and fertilizer, nanocapsules for herbicide delivery and vector and pest management and nanosensors for pest detection. The atom by atom arrangement allows the manipulation of nanoparticles thus influencing their size, shape and orientation for reaction with the targeted tissues. It is now known that many insects possess ferromagnetic materials in the head, thorax and abdomen, which act as geomagnetic sensors. In this paper, our discussion is focused on nanoparticles in insects and their potential for use in insect pest management.

 

Key words: Nanoporous zeolites, nanocapsules, nanosensors, nanoparticles, insect pest management.