The pomegranate butterfly, Virachola livia (Klug), is one of the most
important pests in Egypt affects the quantity and quality of fruits. At the end of the
season, 20 healthy fruits and 20 infested fruits were collected from Manfaloty,
Higazy and Araby cultivars to determine the effect of infestation on some chemical
compositions of pomegranate fruits (juice and peels). Results showed that the
infestation of pomegranate butterfly reduced the percentage of total soluble solids
(14.73, 13.93 and 13.90%), TSS/acidity ratio (12.42, 11.71 and 8.49%), total
sugars (12.92, 12.48 and 12.34%) and total reducing sugars (11.32, 11.03 and
10.33%) and caused a significant increase of total titratable acidity (1.19,1.39 and
1.54) in the infested fruits compared to the healthy fruits TSS (16.43, 16.33 and
14.37%), TSS/acidity ratio (14.41, 14.24 and 10.97%), TS (14.88, 14.62 and
13.42%) and TRS (14.13, 13.23 and 11.19%) and TTA (1.13, 1.26 and 1.35) of
Mnafaloty, Higazy and Araby cultivars, respectively. In addition, the infestation
of this pest also affects the chemical composition of pomegranate peels which
reduced the percentage of moisture (72.96, 65.53 and 61.78%), protein (4.52, 4.07
and 3.62%), Potassium (12.70, 10.72 and 10.01 g/kg) and caused a significant
increase in total carbohydrates (28.89, 27.27 and 12.93%), Calcium (3.26, 3.70 and
3.95 g/kg) and pH values (3.87, 3.90 and 4.19) in the infested fruits compared to
the healthy fruits moisture (74.53, 67.08 and 62.76%), protein (4.93, 4.28 and
4.91%), potassium (15.92, 13.16 and 12.21g/kg), total carbohydrates (22.37, 25.51
and 12.21%), Calcium (2.59, 2.54 and 3.21g/kg) and pH values (4.09, 3.99 and
4.46). These results show that the pomegranate butterfly infestation affects the
chemical composition of fruits and decreased the economic importance of
pomegranate. Therefore, an integrated control program must be developed for this
pest to improve the quality and quantity of pomegranate fruits and to reduce its
damage to the crop

The green lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea (Stephens) is considered one of
the most effective predators with commercial viability for usage in many
agricultural systems against a variety of crop pests. Results showed that after 24
h of exposure the LC 50 values for chlorpyrifos, lambada-cyhalothrin, abamectin,
acetamiprid, lufenoron (72h) and methomyl were 0.201,4.66, 25.86,71.54,258.93
and 388.37 mgL -1
, respectively. Chlorpyrifos was the most toxic among the
pesticides studied. In consideration of the developmental time of the 2 nd instar
larvae treated with sublethal concentration (LC10) revealed a significant
difference between treats of all tested pesticides compared to untreated control.
Plus, no significant difference was observed among lambada-cyhalothrin,
abamectin, acetamiprid, and lufenuron treatments considering the larval
developmental time. The developmental time of the 3 rd instars larvae treated with
chlorpyrifos, lufenuron, and acetamiprid were not significant compared to the
control treatment. For the pupae's developing time, the differences between
treatments and controls were significant. The mean numbers of eggs of C.
cephalonicus and Aphis craccivora Koch consumed by C. carnea 2 nd and 3 rd
instar larvae significantly decreased after exposure of sublethal concentration of
the selected insecticides compared to the control. In accordance with the results
obtained, abamectin, lambada-cyhalothrin and lufenuron might be incorporated
into integrated pest management (IPM) programs in combination with C. carnea
for the control of sucking insect pests. Further, the use of chlorpyrifos, methomyl
and acetamiprid in IPM strategies should be taken into consideration when
releasing the green lacewing, due to the toxic effects observed under laboratory
conditions.

2-((3-cyano-4, 6-distyrylpyridin-2-yl) thio) acetophenone (2) was synthesized by the reaction of 3-cyano-4, 6-distyrylpyridin-2 (1H)-thione (1) with an alkylating agent, phenacyl bromide in the presence of fused sodium acetate and ethanol. Compound 2 underwent Thorpe-Ziegler cyclization upon heating in ethanolic sodium ethoxide solution to yield the target, 3-amino-2-benzoyl-4, 6-distyrylthieno [2, 3-b] pyridine (3). Elemental and spectral characterizations of the newly synthesized compounds 2 and 3 have been achieved. Both compounds 2 and 3 exhibited significant insecticidal activities after treated for 24 and 48 h compared with the reference compound, acetamiprid, when screened for their insecticidal activity against the nymphs and adults of cowpea aphid, Aphis craccivora Koch. Therefore, the results obtained are very promising, and accentuate on the importance of such heterocyclic pyridine compounds as efficient pesticides.