ArticleScientific reports2021
Co-formulant in a commercial fungicide product causes lethal and sub-lethal effects in bumble bees.
Article in Scientific reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 33 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
33 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- Weak evidence base for bee protective pesticide mitigation measures.Journal of economic entomology · 2023Pooled it
- 'Inert' ingredients are understudied, potentially dangerous to bees and deserve more research attention.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2022Pooled it
- Morphological and toxicological effects of a deltamethrin-based insecticide on aquatic insect larvae: Grumichella boraceia (Trichoptera) as a bioindicator of pyrethroid contamination.Ecotoxicology (London, England) · 2026Article
- Acute Exposure to Traces of Chlorantraniliprole Does Not Alter Antipredator Behaviour in Wild Crickets.Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Sulfoxaflor reduces food intake and learning efficiency of solitary Osmia bicornis bees.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Horizon scanning for European wild pollinators identifies world-leading legislation as a key opportunity for pollinators.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Potential of Beauveria bassiana in the control of Euschistus crenator (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) and selectivity to the parasitoid Telenomus podisi (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae).Pest management science · 2026Article
- Chronic exposure to sublethal concentrations of Boral® 500 SC (sulfentrazone) induces sex- and age-dependent metabolic and behavioral effects in Drosophila melanogaster.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2026Article
- Comparative toxicity of plant protection products, their active substances and mixtures in zebrafish embryos and HepaRG cells.Archives of toxicology · 2026Article
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- Microsporidian parasite impairs colony fitness in bumblebees.Open biology · 2025Article
- Exposure of Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies to imidacloprid impairs larval development, promotes oxidative stress in pupae, and induces changes in the midgut of adult bees.Biological research · 2025Article
- Adjuvants to improve efficacy of miticides in managed honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies to control Varroa destructor.PloS one · 2025Article
- Changes in the proteome of Apis mellifera acutely exposed to sublethal dosage of glyphosate and imidacloprid.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2024Article
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- The active ingredient is not always to blame: in response to Serra et al. (2023).Ecotoxicology (London, England) · 2024Article
- Evaluation of neurological behavior alterations and metabolic changes in mice under chronic glyphosate exposure.Archives of toxicology · 2024Article
- 'Inert' co-formulants of a fungicide mediate acute effects on honey bee learning performance.Scientific reports · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Pollinators, particularly wild bees, are suffering declines across the globe, and pesticides are thought to be drivers of these declines. Research into, and regulation of pesticides has focused on the active ingredients, and their impact on bee health. In contrast, the additional components in pesticide formulations have been overlooked as potential threats. By testing an acute oral dose of the fungicide product Amistar, and equivalent doses of each individual co-formulant, we were able to measure the toxicity of the formulation and identify the ingredient responsible. We found that a co-formulant, alcohol ethoxylates, caused a range of damage to bumble bee health. Exposure to alcohol ethoxylates caused 30% mortality and a range of sublethal effects. Alcohol ethoxylates treated bees consumed half as much sucrose as negative control bees over the course of the experiment and lost weight. Alcohol ethoxylates treated bees had significant melanisation of their midguts, evidence of gut damage. We suggest that this gut damage explains the reduction in appetite, weight loss and mortality, with bees dying from energy depletion. Our results demonstrate that sublethal impacts of pesticide formulations need to be considered during regulatory consideration, and that co-formulants can be more toxic than active ingredients.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.