Use of diatomaceous earth to control nymphal American dog ticks, Dermacentor variabilis Say (Acari: Ixodidae): laboratory to simulated field experiments.

Diatomaceous earth (DE) recently was shown to rapidly kill ticks. Proof of concept for use of DE to kill the American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, the most widely distributed native three-host tick in North America, has not been investigated. Unfed D.

Orientia, Rickettsia, and the microbiome in rodent attached chiggers in North Carolina, USA.

Chiggers are larval mites that pose a significant health risk globally via the spread of scrub typhus. However, fundamental studies into the bacterial microbiome in North America have never been considered. In this investigation, chiggers were collected in the wild from two locally common rodent host species (i.

Facultatively ectoparasitic mites as vectors for entomopathogenic bacteria in Drosophila.

Opportunistic bacterial infections are common in insect populations but there is little information on how they are acquired or transmitted. We tested the hypothesis that Macrocheles mites can transmit systemic bacterial infections between Drosophila hosts. We found that 24% of mites acquired detectable levels of bacteria after feeding on infected flies and 87% of infected mites passed bacteria to naïve recipient flies.

Acaricidal Biominerals and Mode-of-Action Studies against Adult Blacklegged Ticks, .

Ticks in the USA are the most important arthropod vector of microbes that cause human and animal disease. The blacklegged tick, , the focus of this study, is able to transmit the bacteria that causes Lyme disease in humans in the USA. The main approach to tick control is the use of chemical acaricides and repellents, but known and potential tick resistance to these chemicals requires the discovery of new methods of control.

in Ticks: A Review of Distribution, Pathogenicity, and Diversity.

is a potentially pathogenic species of within the spotted fever group vectored by ticks. While many studies have been published on this species, there is debate over its pathogenicity and the inhibitory role it plays in diagnosing illnesses caused by other spotted fever group species. Many publications have recorded the high infection prevalence of in tick populations at a global scale.

Mechanical Acaricides Active against the Blacklegged Tick, .

Cases of Lyme disease in humans are on the rise in the United States and Canada. The vector of the bacteria that causes this disease is the blacklegged tick, . Current control methods for mainly involve chemical acaricides.

The effects of habitat type and pathogen infection on tick host-seeking behaviour.

Tick-borne pathogens pose a significant risk to livestock, wildlife and public health. Host-seeking behaviours may depend on a combination of infection status and environmental factors. Here, we assessed the effects of habitat type and pathogen infection on host-seeking behaviour (questing) in the lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum.

Combining DL-Methionine and Subspecies : Prospects for a Mosquito Larvicide.

Mosquito larvicides can reduce mosquito populations at the source, potentially decreasing biting rates and pathogen transmission. However, there is a growing need for mosquito larvicides that are environmentally sustainable. subspecies (BTI) is a naturally occurring bacterium commonly used as a larvicide to manage mosquito populations.

Evaluation of Fipronil Susceptibility in the Lone Star Tick (Acari: Ixodidae).

The lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum Linnaeus, is ubiquitously present in the southeastern United States and will readily parasitize humans and companion animals. Fipronil is the active ingredient in several topically applied products used to manage ticks and fleas on companion animals. Reducing ectoparasite infestations on companion animals decreases the risk that pathogens vectored by these pests are transmitted to these animals and their owners.