Assessment of biopesticides presence, retention and biodegradation residues in citrus leaves, fruit and soil

• Grant number: 24/01857-7
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: July 01, 2024
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Plant Health
• Agreement: CNPq
• Principal Investigator: Henrique Ferreira
• Grantee: Henrique Ferreira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/10839-4 - Sustainable citriculture through controlled release of antibacterial compounds from microgel-based formulations, AP.TEM
• Associated scholarship(s): 24/11225-8 - Assessment of biopesticides presence, retention and biodegradation residues in citrus leaves, fruit and soil., BP.JD

Abstract

The bacterium Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri (X. citri) is the known causer of the citrus canker, a disease that affects all commercially important citrus varieties, reducing both the quality and quantity of fruit. This disease is classified as a quarantine pest and demands an integrated control strategy. Among the techniques applied, we highlight the recurrent application of copper-based agrochemicals. While effective, its indiscriminate use is associated with cumulative effects on the environment and food chain, besides promoting a selective pressure in microrganisms, which could lead to the emergence of copper-tolerant pathogens. Given this scenario, great consumer markets, guided by public opinion about these products, promote legislation that favors the consumption of organic products while reducing the volume of agrochemicals used, imposing sanitary barriers that restrict both the options of products for pathogen control and the consumer markets for producers. In this context, the project in question is inserted in an international research consortium aimed at developing new pesticides that are effective against X. citri while being more sustainable. Our objective is to analyze the persistence of newly developed products in leaves, citrus fruit, and in the soil, besides its effects on the microbiota. The results obtained a the end of this work will allow for a better understanding of the products effectivity and the characterization of their toxicological potential and their impacts on the environment through a simplified extraction method (QuEChERS), assuring products that are not only effective, but more safe and sustainable. (AU)