Termiticidal Effects and Morpho-Histological Alterations in the Subterranean Termite (Odontotermes formosanus) Induced by Biosynthesized Zinc Oxide, Titanium Dioxide, and Chitosan Nanoparticles

Abstract

Recently, nanoparticles have been widely used in agricultural pest control as a secure substitute for pesticides. However, the effect of nanoparticles on controlling the subterranean termite <i>Odontotermes formosanus</i> (<i>O. formosanus</i>) has not been studied yet. Consequently, this study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of some nanomaterials in controlling <i>O. formosanus</i>. The results showed that zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs), titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO₂NPs), and chitosan nanoparticles (CsNPs) biosynthesized using the culture filtrate of <i>Scedosporium apiospermum</i> (<i>S. apiospermum</i>) had an effective role in controlling <i>O. formosanus</i>. Moreover, the mortality rate of <i>O. formosanus</i> after 48 h of treatment with ZnONPs, TiO₂NPs, and CsNPs at a 1000 µg/mL concentration was 100%, 100%, and 97.67%, respectively. Furthermore, using ZnONPs, TiO₂NPs, and CsNPs on <i>O. formosanus</i> resulted in morpho-histological variations in the normal structure, leading to its death. X-ray diffraction, UV-vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and the Zeta potential were used to characterize the biosynthesis of ZnONPs, TiO₂NPs, and CsNPs with strong activity against <i>O. formosanus</i> termites. Overall, the results of this investigation suggest that biosynthesized ZnONPs, TiO₂NPs, and CsNPs have enormous potential for use as innovative, ecologically safe pesticides for <i>O. formosanus</i> control.