Effects of Preexposure to DEET on the Downstream Blood-Feeding Behaviors of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) Mosquitoes.
J Med Entomol. 2016 Jun 10. pii: tjw066. [Epub ahead of print] DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjw066
Your use of DEET causes a mosquito
- To not infect you, but
- Causes mosquito to go elsewhere AND change behavior
- It feeds less on each additional human
- And it compensates for getting less blood by feeding (infecting) more often
- Thus spreading infection to more people
So DEET is great for the individual, but bad for the society
Note: DEET does not KILL a mosquito
See also VitaminDWiki
Sugiharto VA1, Grieco JP2, Murphy JR3, Olsen CH3, Colacicco-Mayhugh MG4, Stewart VA3, Achee NL2, Turell MJ5.
1Department of Preventive Medicine & Biostatistics, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD 20814 (victor.sugiharto@usuhs.edu; jgrieco at nd.edu; jittawadee.murphy at usuhs.edu; cara.olsen at usuhs.edu; ann.stewart at usuhs.edu; nachee at nd.edu), victor.sugiharto at usuhs.edu.
2Department of Preventive Medicine & Biostatistics, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD 20814 (victor.sugiharto@usuhs.edu; jgrieco at nd.edu; jittawadee.murphy at usuhs.edu; cara.olsen at usuhs.edu; ann.stewart at usuhs.edu; nachee at nd.edu), Current Address: Department of Biological Sciences, Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, 239 Galvin Life Science Center, Notre Dame, IN 46556.
3Department of Preventive Medicine & Biostatistics, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD 20814 (victor.sugiharto@usuhs.edu; jgrieco at nd.edu; jittawadee.murphy at usuhs.edu; cara.olsen at usuhs.edu; ann.stewart at usuhs.edu; nachee at nd.edu).
4Joint Project Manager Medical Countermeasure Systems, Fort Detrick, MD 21702 (michelle.g.colaciccomayhugh.mil@mail.mil), and.
5Department of Vector Assessment, Virology Division, US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, MD 21702 (mturell@erols.com).
Mosquito behavior is heavily influenced by the chemical molecules in the environment. This knowledge can be used to modify insect behaviors; particularly to reduce vector-host contact as a powerful method for disease prevention. N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET) is the most widely used insect repellent in the market and an excellent example of a chemical that has been used to modify insect behavior for disease prevention. However, genetic insensitivity and habituation in Aedes aegypti (L.) mosquitoes after preexposure to DEET have been reported. In this study, we investigated the effect of preexposure to DEET on the downstream blood-feeding behavior of Ae. aegypti mosquitoes and the duration of the effect.
We exposed mosquitoes to four different DEET concentrations: 0.10, 0.12, 0.14, and 0.16% for 10?min then allowed the mosquitoes to blood-feed on an artificial blood-feeding system either immediately or after being held for 1, 3, 6, or 24?h following DEET exposure. We found that preexposing Ae. aegypti mosquitoes to 0.14 or 0.16% DEET lowered their blood engorgement level, but did not alter their landing and probing behavior when compared to the control test populations.
The reduction in complete blood-feeding was observed at all time periods tested, but was only statistically significant at 3 and 6 h after the preexposure process.
Because reduction in blood meal has been associated with increased refeeding, future studies analyzing the effect of this behavior using arbovirus-infected mosquitoes are needed to address the concern of potentially increased vectorial capacity.
PMID: 27288690
Publisher wants $39 for the PDF
Medical groups are recommending DEET - which they (perhaps Incorrectly) think is far less of a problem than Zika
Insect Repellants During Pregnancy in the Era of the Zika Virus - Aug 2016
Obstetrics & Gynecology: doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000001685
Wylie, Blair J. MD, MPH; Hauptman, Marissa MD, MPH; Woolf, Alan D. MD, MPH; Goldman, Rose H. MD, MPH
Health care providers must be equipped to provide appropriate advice to reproductive-aged patients for protection against the potentially devastating consequences of prenatal Zika virus exposure. The goal of this commentary is to summarize what is known about the safety and toxicity of N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET) as a topical insect repellant and the pyrethroid permethrin for treatment of fabric, endorsed in the fight against Zika virus. Reviews assessing the safety and toxicity of DEET conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Canadian Pest Management Regulatory Agency conclude that DEET has low acute toxicity and does not appear to pose a significant health concern to humans when used as directed. Some experimental animal and limited epidemiologic data suggest that prenatal pyrethroid exposure may adversely affect learning and behavior, but this level of evidence pales in comparison to the known risks of Zika virus to the fetal brain. The available evidence has led to the strong recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for use of these products by pregnant women as personal protection against mosquito bites in the fight against Zika virus infection. This message has been affirmed by our obstetrics and gynecology professional organizations. Because Zika virus is unlikely to be the last disease requiring vector control, those with environmental health expertise must continue to join with infectious disease specialists to communicate the potential vulnerability of our youngest (fetuses, infants, and young children) to vector-borne disease, both to the disease itself and to the strategies employed to mitigate the spread of such disease.
The PDF also discusses PERMETHRIN for fabric but does not mention Picaridin
I suspect that there is a DEET lobby, but no Picaridin lobby
Download the PDF from VitaminDWiki
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