Elucidating Neonicotinoid Exposure Risks: A Structure-Informed Review of Trends, Hazards, and a Sustainable Development Framework

Neonicotinoid insecticides (NIs) improve crop yield but raise environmental and health concerns. This review describes residues of 13 commercial NIs and their transformation products (TPs) in water, soil, air, vegetables, fruits, tea, and animal-derived foods. It also summarizes risks to nontarget organisms (aquatic species, soil invertebrates, and bees) and humans. NIs disrupt neuronal signaling in nontarget species, suggesting their ecological risks are substantially underestimated. Halogenated NIs show marked environmental persistence. Unexpectedly, all parent NIs and their TPs display high mobility. Six parent NIs and 70.45% of TPs show nontarget toxicity. Notably, 27.24% of neonicotinoid insecticide TPs (excluding dinotefuran's TPs) simultaneously exhibit strong persistence, high mobility, and nontarget toxicity. These threats to ecosystems should not be overlooked. The review proposes forward-looking recommendations for next-generation NIs. Overall, this work provides critical insights into NIs toxicity and ecological impacts, offering valuable guidance for mitigating environmental contamination.