Clothianidin is a neonicotinoid insecticide.1 It binds to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs; IC50 = 0.6 nM for housefly head membranes) and activates non-desensitizing nAChRs in cockroach neurons in vitro (IC50 = 1,520 nM). Clothianidin induces mortality in adult M. persicae (LC95 = 1.28 mg/L), as well as H. virescens and S. frugiperda second instar larvae when used at a concentration of 8 mg/L in a leaf-dip bioassay. In vivo, clothianidin (>25 mg/kg) increases the number of premature births in rabbits and reduces the length and weight of fathead minnows (P. promelas) when administered in tank water at a concentration of 20 mg/L.2

|1. Nauen, R., Ebbinghaus-Kintscher, U., Salgado, V.L., et al. Thiamethoxam is a neonicotinoid precursor converted to clothianidin in insects and plants. Pest. Biochem. Phys. 76(2), 55-69 (2003).|2. Gibbons, D., Morrissey, C., and Mineau, P. A review of the direct and indirect effects of neonicotinoids and fipronil on vertebrate wildlife. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. Int. 22(1), 103-118 (2015).