From: 'Mechanism for the differential toxicity of neonicotinoid insecticides
in the honey bee, Apis mellifera' by Takao Iwasa1,Naoki Motoyama2,John T.
Ambrose, R. Michael Roe / Department of Entomology, Dearstyne Entomology
Building, Campus Box 7647, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
27695-7647, USA:


"The current study found that the cyano-substituted neonicotinoids were less
toxic to honey bees by more than two orders of magnitude as compared to the
nitro substitution in laboratory studies where the insecticides were
topically applied. This reduced toxicity appears to be the result of
increased metabolism by
P450s and the fact that the metabolites have low bee toxicity."

What could be the role of those P450 enzymes (eventually carboxylesterase,
glutathione-S-transferases) in the detoxification of the chloro-substituted
neonicotinoids as imidacloprid, ...? And the role of the inhibitors of those
detoxification enzymes as Piperonyl butoxide,
S,S,S,-tributylphosphorotrihioate, diethyl maleate and others? Is there
still somebody on this planet who knows?

Kind regards,

Ghislain De Roeck,
Belgium.

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