Table 1 Common pesticide classes
From: Nanomaterial enabled sensors for environmental contaminants
Class of chemical pesticides | Examples | Types | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|
Carbamates | Carbaryl, methomyl, propoxur, aldicarb | Fungicide, insecticide, acaricide | Non-persistent, cholinesterase-inhibiting, not very selective, toxic to birds and fish |
Neonicotinoids | Acetamiprid, clothianidin, imidacloprid, nitenpyram, nithiazine, thiacloprid, thiamethoxam | Insecticide | Water soluble, concern regarding persistence and bioaccumulation |
Organochlorines | Aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor; lindane, methoxychlor; toxaphene, hexachlorobenzene (HCB), pentachlorophenol (PCP), DDT | Insecticide, acaricide, fungicide | Persistent, bioaccumulative, affects the ability to reproduce, develop, and to withstand environmental stress by depressing the nervous, endocrine and immune systems |
Organophosphates | Schradan; parathion; malathion | Insecticide, acaricide | Non-persistent, systemic (cholinesterase-inhibiting), not very selective, toxic to humans |
Phenoxy | 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T | Herbicide | Selective effects on humans and mammals are not well known 2,4-D: potential to cause cancer in laboratory animals 2,4,5-T: is the source of a toxic contaminant dioxin |
Pyrethroids | Fenpropathrin, deltamethrin, cypermethrin | Insecticide | Target-specific -more selective than the organophosphates or carbamates, generally not acutely toxic to birds or mammals but particularly toxic to aquatic species |
Triazines | Atrazine, cyanazine, and simazine | Herbicides | Persistent, binds to the plastoquinone-binding protein in photosystem II, endocrine disruptor in humans |