Abstract Erythritol is a dietary sweetener that is used for low-calorie or diabetic diets. Although safe for human consumption, erythritol is lethal to certain Dipteran pests, but insecticidal effects of erythritol on phloem-feeding insects have yet to be examined. Our goal was to determine whether erythritol has insecticidal activity against pear psylla, Cacopsylla pyricola (Foerster) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). We first demonstrated that ingestion of erythritol solutions compared with water by pear psylla caused reduced feeding, impaired motor functions, and reduced survival time of adults. We then tested whether foliar treatment of pear leaves with erythritol was also lethal to pear psylla. Foliar treatment of erythritol led to reduced 3-d survival of pear psylla nymphs and adults, and reduced rates of oviposition by pear psylla adults. Psylla adults also preferred to settle on untreated leaves than on erythritol-treated leaves in preference assays. Finally, we conducted field experiments to test whether applications of erythritol provided pear trees with protection against pear psylla under natural field conditions. Those experiments showed a reduction in pear psylla nymphs on erythritol-treated trees compared with untreated trees, but only if the erythritol was completely dissolved into solution by heating. Laboratory trials confirmed the importance of heating. Results of our experiments demonstrate that erythritol is insecticidal to pear psylla nymphs and adults and provide the first report that erythritol is lethal to a phloem-feeding insect. These findings suggest that erythritol may provide a new safe and effective tool for the management of pear psylla.

中文翻译：

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人造甜味剂赤藓糖醇对梨木虱（半翅目：木虱科）具有杀虫特性

摘要 赤藓糖醇是一种用于低热量或糖尿病饮食的膳食甜味剂。虽然对人类食用是安全的，但赤藓糖醇对某些双翅目害虫是致命的，但赤藓糖醇对韧皮部昆虫的杀虫作用还有待研究。我们的目标是确定赤藓糖醇是否对梨木虱、Cacopsylla pyricola (Foerster)（半翅目：木虱科）具有杀虫活性。我们首先证明，与水相比，梨木虱摄入赤藓糖醇溶液会导致成人进食减少、运动功能受损和存活时间缩短。然后我们测试了用赤藓糖醇对梨叶进行叶面处理是否也对梨木虱致死。赤藓糖醇的叶面处理导致梨木虱若虫和成虫的 3 d 存活率降低，并降低梨木虱成虫的产卵率。在偏好测定中，木虱成虫也更喜欢在未处理的叶子上定居，而不是在赤藓糖醇处理的叶子上定居。最后，我们进行了田间试验，以测试在自然田间条件下，赤藓糖醇的应用是否为梨树提供了对梨木虱的保护作用。这些实验表明，与未经处理的树木相比，赤藓糖醇处理的树木上的梨木虱若虫减少，但前提是赤藓糖醇通过加热完全溶解在溶液中。实验室试验证实了加热的重要性。我们的实验结果表明赤藓糖醇对梨木虱若虫和成虫具有杀虫作用，并首次报道赤藓糖醇对以韧皮部为食的昆虫是致命的。这些发现表明赤藓糖醇可能为梨木虱的管理提供一种新的安全有效的工具。