Nematicidal metabolites from roots of Stellera chamaejasme against Bursaphelenchus xylophilus and Bursaphelenchus mucronatus

BACKGROUND Bursaphelenchus xylophilus , the causal agent of pine wilt disease, severely damages pine forests, and Bursaphelenchus mucronatus , a species related to B. xylophilus , is weakly pathogenic. Because the use of synthetic pesticides to control pine wilt disease has raised concerns for human and environmental health, a search for useful botanically based compounds is needed . RESULTS The ethyl acetate layer from an ethanol extract of Stellera chamaejasme L. roots showed significant nematicidal activity against B. xylophilus and B. mucronatus , with LC 50 values of 169.7 and 37.7 µg mL −1 , respectively, at 72 h. Further purification of the active layer yielded eight effective nematicidal compounds, which were identified by mass and nuclear magnetic resonance spectral data. Among the eight bioactive compounds, chamaejasmenin C induced the highest mortality against B. xylophilus , with an LC 50 value of 2.7 µM at 72 h, and chamaechromone exhibited strong nematicidal activity against B. mucronatus , with an LC 50 value of 0.003 µM at 72 h . CONCLUSION The nematicidal metabolites from S. chamaejasme roots could be used as lead compounds for developing botanically based nematicides for the management of pine wilt disease. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry