Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management

Acetamiprid

General Information

• Product Names:

  Assail (Nippon)
  Intruder (Nippon)
  Tristar (Nippon)

• Chemical Class: Neonicotinoid Insecticide
• Uses: Agriculture, Lawns/broadleaf plants
• Alternatives: Organic agriculture, Organic lawn care
• Beyond Pesticides rating: Toxic

Health and Environmental Effects

• Cancer: Insufficient Studies
• Endocrine Disruption: Possible (187)
• Reproductive Effects: Possible (185, 187)
• Neurotoxicity: Yes (34, 183, 184)
• Kidney/Liver Damage: Yes (188, 189, 190)
• Sensitizer/ Irritant: No (191)
• Birth/Developmental: Possible (185, 191)
• Detected in Groundwater: Possible (192)
• Potential Leacher: Possible (191, 193)
• Toxic to Birds: Likely (191)
• Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes (186)
• Toxic to Bees: Yes (39)

Residential Uses as Found in the ManageSafe™ Database

• Ants
• Cockroaches
• Bed Bugs
• Termites

Additional Information

• Regulatory Status:
  • EPA Factsheet (3/2002)
• Supporting information:
  • PAN Pesticides Database: (Pesticide Action Network)
• Studies:
  • Low concentration acetamiprid-induced oxidative stress hinders the growth and development of silkworm posterior silk glands. Lu, Z., Ye, W., Feng, P., Dai, M., Bian, D., Ren, Y., Zhu, Q., Mao, T., Su, W., Li, F. and Sun, H., 2021. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology, 174, p.104824.
  • Effects of neonicotinoid pesticide exposure on human health: a systematic review. Cimino AM, Boyles AL, Thayer KA, Perry MJ. 2017. Environ Health Perspect. 125:155–162
  • Genotoxic effects of a particular mixture of acetamiprid and α‐cypermethrin on chromosome aberration, sister chromatid exchange, and micronucleus formation in human peripheral blood lymphocytes. Kocaman, A.Y. and Topaktaş, M., 2010. Environmental Toxicology: An International Journal, 25(2), pp.157-168.
  • Two cases of acute poisoning with acetamiprid in humans. Imamura, T., Yanagawa, Y., Nishikawa, K., Matsumoto, N. and Sakamoto, T., 2010. Clinical toxicology, 48(8), pp.851-853.
  • Effects of acetamiprid on immune system in female Wistar rats. Mondal, S., Ghosh, R.C., Mate, M.S. and Karmakar, D.B., 2009. In Proceedings of the Zoological Society (Vol. 62, No. 2, pp. 109-117). Springer-Verlag.
  • In vitro evaluation of the genotoxicity of acetamiprid in human peripheral blood lymphocytes. Kocaman, A.Y. and Topaktaş, M., 2007. Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis, 48(6), pp.483-490.
  • Neonicotinoid insecticides promote breast cancer progression via G protein-coupled estrogen receptor: In vivo, in vitro and in silico studies. Li, X., He, S., Xiao, H., He, T.T., Zhang, J.D., Luo, Z.R., Ma, J.Z., Yin, Y.L., Luo, L. and Cao, L.Y., 2022. Environment International, 170, p.107568.
  • Infantile Internal and External Exposure to Neonicotinoid Insecticides: A Comparison of Levels across Various Sources. Zhang, H., Wang, Y., Zhu, H., Lu, S., Wang, Y., Xue, J., Zhang, T., Kannan, K. and Sun, H., 2023. Environmental Science & Technology, 57(13), pp.5358-5367.
  • Major Pesticides Are More Toxic to Human Cells Than Their Declared Active Principles. Mesnage, R. et al. (2014) Major pesticides are more toxic to human cells than their declared active principles, BioMed Research International. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3955666/.
  • The molecular determinants of pesticide sensitivity in bee pollinators. Bass, C. et al (2024) The molecular determinants of pesticide sensitivity in bee pollinators, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724003097.
  • Neonicotinoid pesticides: evidence of developmental neurotoxicity from regulatory rodent studies. Sass, J.B., Donley, N. and Freese, W. (2024) Neonicotinoid pesticides: evidence of developmental neurotoxicity from regulatory rodent studies, Frontiers in Toxicology. Available at: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/toxicology/articles/10.3389/ftox.2024.1438890/full.
  • Nationwide Biomonitoring of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Breast Milk and Health Risk Assessment to Nursing Infants in the Chinese Population. Chen, D. et al. (2020) Nationwide Biomonitoring of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Breast Milk and Health Risk Assessment to Nursing Infants in the Chinese Population, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Available at: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jafc.0c05769.
  • Impact of Endocrine Disrupting Pesticide Use on Obesity: A Systematic Review. Pérez-Bermejo, M. et al. (2024) Impact of Endocrine Disrupting Pesticide Use on Obesity: A Systematic Review, Biomedicines. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/12/12/2677.
  • Widespread Use and Frequent Detection of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Wetlands of Canada's Prairie Pothole Region. Main, A.R. et al. (2014) Widespread Use and Frequent Detection of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Wetlands of Canada’s Prairie Pothole Region, PLOS ONE. Available at: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0092821.
  • A Th2-type immune response and low-grade systemic inflammatory reaction as potential immunotoxic effects in intensive agriculture farmers exposed to pesticides . Lozano-Paniagua, D. et al. (2024) ‘A th2-type immune response and low-grade systemic inflammatory reaction as potential immunotoxic effects in intensive agriculture farmers exposed to pesticides’, Science of The Total Environment, 938, p. 173545. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.173545.
  • Pesticide-Induced Inflammation at a Glance. Lopes-Ferreira, M. et al. (2023) ‘Pesticide-induced inflammation at a glance’, Toxics, 11(11), p. 896. doi:10.3390/toxics11110896.
  • Residues and Bioavailability of Neonicotinoid Pesticide in Shaanxi Agricultural Soil. Hua, L., Zhao, D., Wang, H. et al. Residues and Bioavailability of Neonicotinoid Pesticide in Shaanxi Agricultural Soil. Water Air Soil Pollut 234, 129 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-023-06159-1
  • Adverse Effects of Pesticides on the Ovary: Evidence from Epidemiological and Toxicological Studies. Wang, L., Ma, X. and Liu, J. (2025) Adverse Effects of Pesticides on the Ovary: Evidence from Epidemiological and Toxicological Studies, Environment & Health. Available at: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/envhealth.4c00243.
  • The effects analysis of two neonicotinoid insecticides on in vitro maturation of porcine oocytes using hanging drop monoculture method. Ishikawa, S., Hiraga, K., Hiradate, Y., & Tanemura, K. (2015). The effects analysis of two neonicotinoid insecticides on in vitro maturation of porcine oocytes using hanging drop monoculture method. The Journal of veterinary medical science, 77(6), 725–728. https://doi.org/10.1292/jvms.15-0008
  • Neonicotinoid insecticides can pose a severe threat to grassland plant bug communities. Sedlmeier, J.E. et al. (2025) Neonicotinoid insecticides can pose a severe threat to grassland plant bug communities, Communications Earth & Environment. Available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02065-y.
  • Chronic oral exposure to field-realistic pesticide combinations via pollen and nectar: effects on feeding and thermal performance in a solitary bee. Azpiazu, C., Bosch, J., Viñuela, E. et al. Chronic oral exposure to field-realistic pesticide combinations via pollen and nectar: effects on feeding and thermal performance in a solitary bee. Sci Rep 9, 13770 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50255-4
  • Exposure to sublethal levels of insecticide-fungicide mixtures affect reproductive success and population growth rates in the solitary bee Osmia cornuta. Albacete, S., Sancho, G., Azpiazu, C., Sgolastra, F., Rodrigo, A., & Bosch, J. (2024). Exposure to sublethal levels of insecticide-fungicide mixtures affect reproductive success and population growth rates in the solitary bee Osmia cornuta. Environment international, 190, 108919. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2024.108919
  • Acute toxicity of 6 neonicotinoid insecticides to freshwater invertebrates. Raby, M., Nowierski, M., Perlov, D., Zhao, X., Hao, C., Poirier, D. G., & Sibley, P. K. (2018). Acute toxicity of 6 neonicotinoid insecticides to freshwater invertebrates. Environmental toxicology and chemistry, 37(5), 1430–1445. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.4088
  • Single and joint toxicity assessment of acetamiprid and thiamethoxam neonicotinoids pesticides on biochemical indices and antioxidant enzyme activities of a freshwater fish Catla catla. Veedu, S. K., Ayyasamy, G., Tamilselvan, H., & Ramesh, M. (2022). Single and joint toxicity assessment of acetamiprid and thiamethoxam neonicotinoids pesticides on biochemical indices and antioxidant enzyme activities of a freshwater fish Catla catla. Comparative biochemistry and physiology. Toxicology & pharmacology : CBP, 257, 109336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpc.2022.109336
  • The Effect of Neonicotinoids Exposure on Oreochromis niloticus Histopathological Alterations and Genotoxicity. El-Garawani, I.M., Khallaf, E.A., Alne-na-ei, A.A. et al. The Effect of Neonicotinoids Exposure on Oreochromis niloticus Histopathological Alterations and Genotoxicity. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 109, 1001–1009 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-022-03611-6