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Entomology

University of Kentucky

Bed bug

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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Human Skin Triglycerides Prevent Bed Bug (Cimex Lectularius L.) Arrestment, Sudip Gaire, Zachary C. Devries, Russell Mick, Richard G. Santangelo, Grazia Bottillo, Emanuela Camera, Coby Schal Dec 2021

Human Skin Triglycerides Prevent Bed Bug (Cimex Lectularius L.) Arrestment, Sudip Gaire, Zachary C. Devries, Russell Mick, Richard G. Santangelo, Grazia Bottillo, Emanuela Camera, Coby Schal

Entomology Faculty Publications

Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) have proliferated globally and have become one of the most challenging pests to control indoors. They are nocturnal and use multiple sensory cues to detect and orient towards their human hosts. After feeding, usually on a sleeping human, they return to a shelter on or around the sleeping surface, but not directly on the host. We hypothesized that although human skin odors attract hungry bed bugs, human skin compounds may also prevent arrestment on hosts. We used arrestment assays to test human skin swabs, extracts from human skin swabs, and pure compounds identified from …


Aggregation Behavior In The Bed Bug, Cimex Lectularius L., Paul D. Baker Jan 2020

Aggregation Behavior In The Bed Bug, Cimex Lectularius L., Paul D. Baker

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., is a common household pest that feeds on the blood of its human hosts. Unlike many other hematophagic arthropods, bed bugs have not demonstrated the ability to vector disease; yet its presence in a household often leads to fear and anxiety amongst its human host victims. Bed bugs spend the majority of their time aggregating in enclosed and hidden locations, making it difficult to detect and eradicate them. One of the significant mediators of aggregation behavior is an aggregation pheromone. The pheromone has been identified to be six chemical compounds, five volatile compounds that …


Juvenile Hormone Regulation Of Female Reproduction In The Common Bed Bug, Cimex Lectularius, Hemant Gujar, Subba Reddy Palli Oct 2016

Juvenile Hormone Regulation Of Female Reproduction In The Common Bed Bug, Cimex Lectularius, Hemant Gujar, Subba Reddy Palli

Entomology Faculty Publications

To begin studies on reproduction in common bed bug, Cimex lectularius, we identified three genes coding for vitellogenin (Vg, a protein required for the reproductive success of insects) and studied their hormonal regulation. RNA interference studied showed that expression of Vg3 gene in the adult females is a prerequisite for successful completion of embryogenesis in the eggs laid by them. Juvenile hormone (JH) receptor, Methoprene-tolerant (Met), steroid receptor coactivator (SRC) and GATAa but not ecdysone receptor (EcR) or its partner, ultraspiracle (USP) are required for expression of Vg genes. Feeding and mating working through Vg, Met, SRC, EcR, and …


Unique Features Of A Global Human Ectoparasite Identified Through Sequencing Of The Bed Bug Genome, Joshua B. Benoit, Zach N. Adelman, Klaus Reinhardt, Amanda Dolan, Monica Poelchau, Emily C. Jennings, Elise M. Szuter, Richard W. Hagan, Hemant Gujar, Jayendra Nath Shukla, Fang Zhu, M. Mohan, David R. Nelson, Andrew J. Rosendale, Christian Derst, Valentina Resnik, Sebastian Wernig, Pamela Menegazzi, Christian Wegener, Nicolai Peschel, Jacob M. Hendershot, Wolfgang Blenau, Reinhard Predel, Paul R. Johnston, Panagiotis Ioannidis, Robert M. Waterhouse, Ralf Nauen, Corinna Schorn, Mark-Christoph Ott, Frank Maiwald, Subba R. Palli Feb 2016

Unique Features Of A Global Human Ectoparasite Identified Through Sequencing Of The Bed Bug Genome, Joshua B. Benoit, Zach N. Adelman, Klaus Reinhardt, Amanda Dolan, Monica Poelchau, Emily C. Jennings, Elise M. Szuter, Richard W. Hagan, Hemant Gujar, Jayendra Nath Shukla, Fang Zhu, M. Mohan, David R. Nelson, Andrew J. Rosendale, Christian Derst, Valentina Resnik, Sebastian Wernig, Pamela Menegazzi, Christian Wegener, Nicolai Peschel, Jacob M. Hendershot, Wolfgang Blenau, Reinhard Predel, Paul R. Johnston, Panagiotis Ioannidis, Robert M. Waterhouse, Ralf Nauen, Corinna Schorn, Mark-Christoph Ott, Frank Maiwald, Subba R. Palli

Entomology Faculty Publications

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius, has re-established itself as a ubiquitous human ectoparasite throughout much of the world during the past two decades. This global resurgence is likely linked to increased international travel and commerce in addition to widespread insecticide resistance. Analyses of the C. lectularius sequenced genome (650 Mb) and 14,220 predicted protein-coding genes provide a comprehensive representation of genes that are linked to traumatic insemination, a reduced chemosensory repertoire of genes related to obligate hematophagy, host-symbiont interactions, and several mechanisms of insecticide resistance. In addition, we document the presence of multiple putative lateral gene transfer events. Genome …


The Chemical Ecology Of Bed Bugs (Cimex Lectularius, L.) And The Impact Of A Neurotoxic Insecticide On Physiology And Behavior, Sydney E. Crawley Jan 2016

The Chemical Ecology Of Bed Bugs (Cimex Lectularius, L.) And The Impact Of A Neurotoxic Insecticide On Physiology And Behavior, Sydney E. Crawley

Theses and Dissertations--Entomology

Following a decades-long hiatus in many nations, populations of bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) have rebounded and are thriving on a global scale posing substantial challenges for pest management professionals. Insecticide resistance to both pyrethroid and neonicotinoid compounds has been identified in many populations, leading to renewed interest in alternative control methods for management of this pest. The objectives of my dissertation research were to study various, typically cryptic, bed bug behaviors in order to improve both conventional and alternative management strategies. Novel behavioral interactions among mother and offspring were characterized. Additionally, changes in behavior and physiology after treatment …