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Updated: Apr 28, 2026

Measuring Rates of Herbicide Metabolism in Dicot Weeds with an Excised Leaf Assay
Published on: September 7, 2015
3-(Methoxycarbonylmethylene)isobenzofuran-1-imines as a new class of potential herbicides
Fabrizio Araniti1, Raffaella Mancuso2, Ida Ziccarelli3
1Dipartimento AGRARIA, Università Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria, Reggio Calabria 89124, Italy.
Abstract:
A novel class of potential herbicides, the 3-(methoxycarbonylmethylene) isobenzofuran-1-imines, has been discovered. The herbicidal activity has been tested on two particular molecules, (E)-methyl 2-[3-(butylimino)isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ylidene]acetate (1) and (E)-methyl 2-phenyl-2-[3-(phenylimino)isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ylidene]acetate (2), prepared by palladium-catalyzed oxidative carbonylation of 2-alkynylbenzamides. Both compounds 1 and 2 showed a strong phytotoxic effect on both shoot and root systems of Arabidopsis thaliana. The effects observed on the shoot were similar for both molecules, but while compound 1 showed a stronger effect on root parameters (such as primary root length, root hair and density, showing lower ED50 values), compound 2 caused important malformations in root morphology. Our results indicate that these molecules are very promising synthetic herbicides.
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