RESEARCH ARTICLE
In VitroEfficacy of Four Insecticides Against Eggs of Tunga penetrans (Siphonaptera)
Tim Kiesewetter1, Liana Ariza2, Maria M. Martins3, Jean E. Limongi4, 5, Juliana Junqueira da Silva5, Julio Mendes4, Claudia M. Lins Calheiros6, Heiko Becher7, Jorg Heukelbach2, 8, *
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2013Volume: 7
First Page: 15
Last Page: 18
Publisher ID: TODJ-7-15
DOI: 10.2174/1874372220130723003
Article History:
Received Date: 3/04/2013Revision Received Date: 14/07/2013
Acceptance Date: 16/07/2013
Electronic publication date: 23/8/2013
Collection year: 2013
open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Systematic assessments of control measures against the jigger flea Tunga penetrans are scarce, and there are no published data available on the efficacy of environmental insecticides against immature stages. We tested four environmental contact insecticides used by Brazilian authorities for disease control (deltamethrin, bifenthrin, dichlorvos and etofenprox) against T. penetrans eggs. Eggs were reared in vitro. Hatch rates were observed under standardized conditions and compared to a control group (40 eggs in each group). No larvae hatched after treatment with the organophosphate dichlorvos (100% efficacy). The efficacies of the other products tested varied between 17% and 57%. The data show that the organophosphate dichlorvos had a good in vitro efficacy. The use of dichlorvos can be directed to typical spots where early stages of T. penetrans are expected, considering its toxicity. Disease control should also consist of prevention measures concerning housing and environmental conditions, veterinary and human health measures.