Neonicotinoid Pesticides

Neonicotinoid pesticides have received a lot of attention in the mainstream press as a possible cause of colony collapse disorder (CCD) in honeybees, which are crucial pollinators in many agricultural environments where their viability enables billions of dollars of agricultural commerce each year. While CCD may also have other causes, such as parasitism by the aptly named Varroa destructor mite immunodeficiencies brought on by over-reliance on monoculture environments, and pesticides belonging to other chemical classes, it is likely that a combination of factors is responsible for the dramatic collapse. Analytical chemists have focused on neonicotinoid pesticides as a potential contributing factor.

Neonicotinoids are a relatively new class of insecticides that function on nicotinic acetylcholine cell receptors in the nervous system, similar to nicotine. Neonicotinoids bind much more strongly to insect receptors than to mammalian receptors, and are thus much more toxic to insects than mammals. Originally praised as being safer for benign insects, recent research on neonicotinoids has indicated that this original conclusion may not be the case. There are numerous studies now available discussing the subject of neonicotinoid insecticides as a possible cause for CCD. Further, neonicotinoids are implicated as potential threats to insect-eating birds, not only for their direct toxicity, but also due to diminishing insect supplies in contaminated waters.

CIL has produced several isotopically labeled and unlabeled neonicotinoid standards to assist researchers studying these important chemicals. As noted below, most CIL labeled standards utilize carbon-13 and nitrogen-15 isotopes in the main “skeleton” of the molecule. In addition, CIL offers several metabolites of the parent neonicotinoid compounds for further analysis of decomposition and metabolic breakdown products.