Crop code: special molecules will destroy weeds twice as efficiently without harming nature

Russian scientists have developed a way to increase the effectiveness of anti-weed drugs using a special additive, while reducing their toxicity to other organisms. The technology is based on pillararene molecules, which help pesticides to dissolve better in water. According to researchers, their use makes it possible to increase the effectiveness of drugs on harmful plants by 2-4.5 times. Experts note that the development may be promising for agriculture, as farmers have to find a balance between the need to protect crops with chemicals and reduce their negative impact on the environment.

Effective weed control

Specialists from Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University have discovered a compound whose addition to weed control drugs increases their effectiveness by more than two times, while reducing toxicity to harmless living organisms. Scientists used special pillararen molecules as components that enhance the dissolution of herbicides in water, which gave such a high result.

— Our development opens the way to the creation of a new generation of plant protection products — more selective and safer for nature. In the future, such compounds will help farmers reduce the amount of chemicals introduced into the soil without loss of yield. In the future, we plan to create complex "two-in-one" drugs that perform several tasks simultaneously. Such developments will make it possible to reduce plant protection costs by reducing the number of treatments and consumption rates of each component," said Anastasia Nazarova, project manager, leading researcher at the Laboratory of Organic Compounds Research at the Butlerov Chemical Institute of Kazan Federal University.

Herbicides are widely used in modern agriculture to control weeds. Most of these drugs are poorly soluble in water, therefore they require the use of surfactants or stabilizers, however, these substances can penetrate into plant tissues and through them into the human body, causing harm to health. In addition, once released into the environment, these components reduce soil fertility and water safety, as well as harm their inhabitants, primarily microscopic animals and algae. Therefore, scientists are looking for a way to reduce the environmental damage caused by herbicides.

The authors mixed solutions of two of the most popular drugs of this kind with pillararenes, large organic molecules. They are quite easy to obtain, while they are non-toxic to living organisms and are able to bind other substances, working as molecular "companions," the scientists said. It turned out that when mixed, these compounds and herbicides spontaneously organize into stable aggregates in the form of spheres.

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Experiments have shown that the additives increased the effectiveness of herbicides against wheat, which was used as a weed model, by 2-4.5 times. At the same time, compounds with pillararenes proved to be relatively safe for aquatic organisms. So, to cause a toxic effect in unicellular and crustaceans, concentrations twice as high as in the case of pure herbicides were needed. This selective effect is very important in agriculture, as it will allow you to "customize" the properties of herbicides to control the species of interest and minimize harm to plants protected from weeds.

Practical application

According to NTI expert on crop production Yulia Barankina, it is especially important for agriculture to improve the properties of herbicides, because today farmers are constantly balancing effective crop protection and environmental risks.

— This technology helps to package the active substance in a more "intelligent" form. Due to this, the herbicide becomes more manageable, it works better where it is needed, and at the same time it harms aquatic organisms and, probably, the environment as a whole less. This means that in the future it will be possible to reduce the consumption rate of chemicals, reduce the number of treatments and reduce the burden on soil and water," she said.

In practice, this can solve several problems at once. Firstly, the use of such additives will reduce the toxicity of plant protection products to beneficial and neutral organisms. Secondly, the effectiveness of the use of active substances will increase by reducing losses associated with poor solubility and uneven distribution of drugs. In addition, the technology can make field processing more accurate and cost-effective. This is especially valuable for the agricultural sector, because environmental friendliness in this case does not contradict, but, on the contrary, helps production efficiency.

According to Igor Shkradyuk, coordinator of the industrial greening program at the Wildlife Conservation Center, if the use of additives can significantly reduce the amount of herbicides used in agriculture, this will have a positive impact on the environment.

The development is interesting, but requires testing in various climatic and weather conditions for different plant species, said Vladimir Pinaev, a member of the Public Council of the Basic Organization of the CIS member States for Environmental Education, associate professor at the Department of Environmental Safety and Product Quality Management at the Patrice Lumumba Institute of Ecology at the RUDN University.

— Pillararenes themselves organize herbicides into stable spherical aggregates, acting as "smart" stabilizers. This makes it possible to exclude additional toxic solubilizing chemicals from the formulation. Due to the increased efficiency, it is possible to apply less drug per hectare. This reduces the accumulation of herbicides in the soil and reduces the costs of farmers for chemical protection," he said.

However, the expert emphasized that the conclusions were drawn on the basis of model objects in controlled conditions. Field testing is required for final assessments.

The results of the study, supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (RSF), are published in the journal Environments.