title: Bed bug aggregation pheromone finally identified.
abstract: Bed bugs have become a global epidemic and current detection tools are poorly suited for routine surveillance. Despite intense research on bed bug aggregation behavior and the aggregation pheromone, which could be used as a chemical lure, the complete composition of this pheromone has thus far proven elusive. Here, we report that the bed bug aggregation pheromone comprises five volatile components (dimethyl disulfide, dimethyl trisulfide, (E)-2-hexenal, (E)-2-octenal, 2-hexanone), which attract bed bugs to safe shelters, and one less-volatile component (histamine), which causes their arrestment upon contact. In infested premises, a blend of all six components is highly effective at luring bed bugs into traps. The trapping of juvenile and adult bed bugs, with or without recent blood meals, provides strong evidence that this unique pheromone bait could become an effective and inexpensive tool for bed bug detection and potentially their control.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia (Canada).
authors.forename: Regine
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gries
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Britton
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.forename: Huimin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhai
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Draper
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gries
mesh_terms: D000447:Aldehydes / Q000032:analysis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D000818:Animals; D001511:Bedbugs / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D056148:Chromatography, Reverse-Phase; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006588:Hexanones / Q000032:analysis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006632:Histamine / Q000494:pharmacology; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008297:Male; D010675:Pheromones / Q000032:analysis* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000447:Aldehydes; D006588:Hexanones; D010675:Pheromones; C057348:2-octenal; C051750:2-hexenal; D006632:Histamine
keywords: aggregation pheromone; bed bugs; histamine; semiochemicals