Ryuta Ohno

Major Synthetic Routes for Modern Herbicide Classes and Agrochemical Characteristics

Practical herbicides are classified into several groups according to their mode of action by the Herbicide Resistance Action Committee (HRAC) in cooperation with the Weed Science Society of America (WSSA). The actual classification is composed of 15 groups with 9 subgroups and currently contains a total of 269 kinds of herbicides. Chapters 1–8 deal with representative herbicides belonging to 8 HRAC groups; B (acetolactate synthase inhibitors), F1—F3 (carotenoid biosynthesis inhibitors), G (EPSP synthase inhibitors), H (glutamine synthetase inhibitors), A (ACCase inhibitors), K3 (very long-chain fatty acid, VLCFAs biosynthesis inhibitors), L (cellulose biosynthesis inhibitors) and E (protoporphyrinogen-IX oxidase, PPO inhibitors). Each group contains 50, 19, 2, 2,16, 21, 4 and 26 kinds of practical herbicides, respectively. This chapter briefly summarizes agrochemical characteristics and major synthetic routes for these modern herbicides and chronologically reviews the structural evolution of related compounds (more than 900) disclosed since 1990 except for the PPO inhibitors since 1995.

IDENTIFICATION OF FEMALE SEX PHEROMONE COMPONENTS OF RICE LOOPER, Plusia festucae (L.), (LEPIDOPTERA: NOCTUIDAE)

The rice looper,Plusia festucae, is a defoliator of the rice plant. Chromatographic behavior, chemical reactions, and GC-MS analyses of the female sex pheromone revealed that the main component was (Z)-5-dodecenyl acetate (Z5–12: OAc, component I). The GC-MS analysis also indicated that the pheromone gland extract included another three monounsaturated components, (Z)-5-dodecen-l-ol (Z5–12: OH, component II), (Z)-7-tetradecenyl acetate (Z7–14: OAc, component III), and (Z)-7-tetradecen-l-ol (Z7–14: OH, component IV) in the following ratio: I:II:III:IV=100:6:15:1. In a paddy field, the mixture of synthetic I, II, and III in a ratio of 100:6:15 showed stronger attractancy than the virgin female, while the role of IV was unknown.