Common Pesticides Kill Amphibian Parasites, Study Finds
The combined effects of pesticides and parasites threaten wildlife populations worldwide (e.g. amphibians, honeybees). Pesticides are predicted to exacerbate the effects of parasites on their hosts by reducing the host's ability to defend against parasite infection. Many studies have examined the effects of pesticides on the host organism, but not much attention has been paid to how pesticides directly affect parasites - until now. A recent study by Jessica Hua, assistant professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University, and colleagues, explored the effects of six commonly used pesticides on two different populations of a widespread parasite of amphibians. They found that a broad range of insecticides commonly used in the U.S. kill amphibian parasites, which could potentially decrease the number of parasites that amphibians must defend against. For the pyrethroid and neonicotinoid pesticides tested in this study, this pattern has not been documented before.