Abstract
The toxicity of para-menthane-3,8-diol (PMD), the main arthropod-repellent compound in the oil of the lemon eucalyptus, Corymbia citriodora, was evaluated against nymphs of Ixodes ricinus using five methods (A–E) of a contact toxicity bioassay. Mortality rates were estimated by recording numbers of dead nymphs at 30 min intervals during the first 5 h after the start of exposure and at longer intervals thereafter. The mortality rate increased with increasing concentration of PMD and duration of exposure with a distinct effect after 3.5 h. From the results obtained by methods A, C and E, the LC50 range was 0.035–0.037 mg PMD/cm2 and the LC95 range was 0.095–0.097 mg PMD/cm2 at 4 h of exposure; the LT50 range was 2.1–2.8 h and the LT95 range was 3.9–4.2 h at 0.1 mg PMD/cm2. To determine the duration of toxic activity of PMD, different concentrations (0.002, 0.01, 0.1 mg PMD/cm2) were tested and mortality was recorded at each concentration after 1 h; thereafter new ticks were tested. This test revealed that the lethal activity of PMD remained for 24 h but appeared absent after 48 h. The overall results show that PMD is toxic to nymphs of I. ricinus and may be useful for tick control.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to the Libyan Embassy, Stockholm; Bioglan Pharma–Max Medica, Malmö, Sweden; The Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (Formas/SJFR); and The Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency (Sida/Sarec) for funding this work.
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Elmhalli, F.H., Pålsson, K., Örberg, J. et al. Acaricidal effects of Corymbia citriodora oil containing para-menthane-3,8-diol against nymphs of Ixodes ricinus (Acari: Ixodidae). Exp Appl Acarol 48, 251–262 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-009-9236-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-009-9236-4