DEVELOPMENT OF AN ORALLY EFFECTIVE INSECT REPELLENT

Abstract

Experimental observations were made to test the validity of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-carbon dioxide (CO2) hypothesis, designed to explain the neurochemical interactions that govern a mosquito's behavior in the presence of its host. It was postulated that the formation of carbamino-GABA underlies the activating effects of CO2 on mosquitoes. The isolated central nervous system of the cockroach, P. americana, was utilized to test the effects of carbamino-GABA and other compounds on the nervous system of an insect. GABA inhibited the spontaneous firing rate of this preparation in the absence of CO2, but stimulated it in its presence. Gamma-hydroxybutyric acid, a substance which cannot form a carbamino compound, was inhibitory both in the absence and presence of CO2. A chemical analogue of carbamino-GABA, N-acetyl GABA stimulated the preparation. It was shown that NAG and GABA probably compete for the same site on the synaptic membrane. The evaluation of selected compounds for mosquito repellency by the electronic recording method was studied. A statistically designed series of tests were performed to test the validity of some basic assumptions that are involved in using the electronic method for the assay of repellents.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1969
Accession Number
AD0698551

Entities

People

  • Philip Kashin

Organizations

  • IIT Research Institute

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Alanine
  • Analysis Of Variance
  • Biomedical Research
  • Carbon Dioxide
  • Central Nervous System
  • Chemical Analogs
  • Chemical Compounds
  • Computers
  • Confidence Limits
  • Data Science
  • Firing Rate
  • Information Science
  • Insect Repellents
  • Nervous System
  • Synapses
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Test Methods

Readers

  • Neuroscience
  • Systems Analysis and Design
  • Vector-Borne Disease and Entomology

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics