Acaricidal activity against Panonychus citri and active ingredient of the mangrove plant Cerbera manghas.

Cerbera manghas is a mangrove plant which possesses comprehensive biological activities. A great deal of research has been undertaken on the chemical constituents and medical functions of C. manghas; insecticidal and antifungal activities have also been reported, but the acaricidal activity has not been studied. In our study, the acaricidal activity and active substances of C. manghas were investigated using a spray method, which showed that the methanol extracts of the fruit, twigs and leaves exhibited contact activity against female adults of Panonychus citri, with LC50 values at 24 h of 3.39 g L(-1), 4.09 g L(-1) and 4.11 g L(-1), respectively. An acaricidal compound was isolated from C. manghas by an activity-guided isolation method, and identified as (-)-17β-neriifolin, which is a cardiac glycoside. (-)-17β-Neriifolin revealed high contact activity against female adults, nymphae, larvae and eggs of P. citri, with LC50 values at 24 h of 0.28 g L(-1), 0.29 g L(-1), 0.28 g L(-1) and 1.45 g L(-1), respectively.