Potential Strategies in the Biopesticide Formulations: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

Biopesticides are pest and pathogen management agents based on living microorganisms or natural products (botanical origin). Due to their natural origins, they stand out as an environmentally friendly tool, since they quickly decompose and minimize pollution problems produced by synthetic pesticides. However, these products present significant challenges that affect the bioactivities of the active components, due to the degradation of the biomass or bioactive metabolite by factors such as air, light, and temperature. Therefore, in this study, a systematic search of the Scopus database was conducted and scientometric tools were used to evaluate formulation techniques and approaches that seek to improve the bioactivities of natural preparations. The results showed that published research on biopesticides has significantly increased by 71.24% in the last decade (2011–2021). Likewise, the bibliometrics showed, through temporal flow analysis, and in the period from 2010 to 2021, investigations evolved have toward the use of nanotechnology, with the purpose of improving and potentiating the formulations of biopesticides. Consequently, nanotechnology tools can be classified as current strategies of interest that allow the increase and protection of bioefficacy to a greater extent than traditional biopesticide preparations. This review constitutes an important contribution to future research and expands the panorama in relation to biopesticide formulations for the control of agricultural pests.