- State owned insecticide manufacturer HIL (India) Ltd has supplied about 25 tonnes of Malathion 95% ULV to Iran to help the country control the locust menace. Malathion is a chemical mainly used to protect food-producing plants from insects.
- Malathion, also called carbophos is a broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide and acaricide. It kills insects by preventing their nervous system from working properly. When healthy nerves send signals to each other, a special chemical messenger travels from one nerve to another to continue the message.
- The nerve signal stops when an enzyme is released into the space between the nerves. Malathion binds to the enzyme and prevents the nerve signal from stopping. This causes the nerves to signal each other without stopping. Due to the constant nerve signals, the insects can’t move or breathe normally and they die.
Source: The Week, PIB
[continuation of https://www.manifestias.com/2020/06/05/locust-attack-in-gujarat/]
