Wood_1986_Pestic.Biochem.Physiol_26_170

N-Ethylmaleimide (NEM) injected in sublethal doses enhanced the triatomicide effect of parathion. The study of the possible causes responsible for this synergistic effect in Triatoma infestans showed (1) a depletion of SH groups in the hemolymph and the central nervous system (CNS) caused by NEM; (2) protein and lipid covalent binding of [14C]NEM in the CNS; (3) partial inhibition by NEM of the glutathione S-transferase detoxifying pathway; (4) enhanced penetration of parathion and paraoxon into the insect CNS pretreated with NEM; (5) significant change in the electrophoretic and histochemical pattern of acetylcholinesterase inhibition in NEM-pretreated insects. The results obtained suggest that NEM synergizes parathion in adult T. infestans by inhibiting glutathione-dependent detoxification and enhancing penetration into the CNS.