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Science Mosquitoes don’t like smell of DEET, states U.S. study
Science Mosquitoes don’t like smell of DEET, states U.S. study | Mosquitoes don’t like smell of DEET, states U.S. study |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Tuesday, 26 August 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsThe research of Zainulabeuddin Syed and Walter S. Leal is summarized in their article “Mosquitoes smell and avoid the insect repellent DEET,” (pdf file) which is published in the August 18, 2008 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Syed and Leal, both from the Department of Entomology at the University of California (Davis), write in the abstract to their paper, “The insect repellent DEET is effective against a variety of medically important pests, but its mode of action still draws considerable debate.” They add, “The widely accepted hypothesis that DEET interferes with the detection of lactic acid has been challenged by demonstrated DEET-induced repellency in the absence of lactic acid. The most recent hypothesis suggests that DEET masks or jams the olfactory system by attenuating electrophysiological responses to 1-octen-3-ol [ORN, octenol].” Dr. Leal states in the WebMD article “What Bugs Mosquitoes? Smelling DEET,” "We found that mosquitoes can smell DEET and they stay away from it." He added, “DEET doesn't mask the smell of the host or jam the insect's senses. Mosquitoes don't like it because it smells bad to them." Their research “… shows that mosquitoes smell DEET directly and avoid it.” Page two continues on specifics on their study and why their study is very important to the health and well-being of the world's peoples. |
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