Advancing Sustainable Agriculture: Biopesticides and the Biological Control for Pest Management
A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Pest and Disease Management".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 November 2025 | Viewed by 860
Special Issue Editors
Interests: semiochemicals; pest; essential oils; chemical ecology; biopesticides
Interests: essential oil; terpenes; insects; volatile organic compounds; bioactivity; repellence; antifungal compounds; botanical pesticides; economic analysis; legislation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The use of biological control in agriculture dates back to ancient times, with early civilizations employing natural enemies to manage pests. The modern development of biopesticides began in the 20th century with the discovery of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), an insecticidal bacterium. Since then, advances in microbiology, biotechnology, and integrated pest management (IPM) have accelerated the development of biopesticides derived from microorganisms, plant extracts, and natural enemies. Today, biopesticides and biological control are central to sustainable agriculture, addressing pest challenges while reducing environmental impact.
The increase in pest populations due to climate change and their geographic expansion presents a significant challenge. Food production must adapt by adopting sustainable practices, developing control strategies that ensure food security while also being environmentally friendly.
This Special Issue aims to gather innovative research on biopesticides and biological control to enhance sustainable pest management, aligning with environmental goals and agricultural productivity. This Special Issue will highlight novel strategies relating to biopesticides and biological control, semiochemical effects and mechanisms, and advancements that align with environmental goals while supporting agricultural productivity.
Dr. María Liza López
Dr. María Paula Zunino
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- semiochemicals
- biopesticides
- biological control
- chemical ecology
- pest management
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