Highly Variable Insect Control Efficacy of Tephrosia vogelii Chemotypes
Belmain, S.R., Amoah, B.A., Nyirenda, S.P., Kamanula, J.F., & Stevenson, P.C. (2012). Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 60(40), 10055–10063.
Tephrosia vogelii has long been used as a pest control material in Africa. This study reports that one of two known chemotypes has no pesticidal activity against the cowpea weevil, associated with an absence of rotenoids, and presents the first comparison of the biological activity of several individual rotenoid compounds, which vary considerably in potency. The occurrence of rotenoids in the active chemotype was also found to vary substantially by season, with implications for how the plant is harvested and used as a pesticide.