Abstract Despite awareness of the mutations conferring insecticide resistance in the bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), within the United States few studies address the distribution and frequency of these. Within the United States, studies have focused on collections made along the East Coast and Midwest, documenting the occurrence of two mutations (V419L and L925I) within the voltage-gated sodium channel α-subunit gene shown to be associated with knockdown resistance (kdr) to pyrethroids. Here, the distribution and frequency of the V419L and L925I site variants is reported from infestations sampled within Oklahoma and its immediately adjacent states. Additionally, the presence of a mutation previously undocumented in the United States (I935F) is noted. While novel in the United States, this mutation has previously been reported in Australian and Old World populations. No infestations were found to harbor wild-type individuals, and hence susceptible, at each of the three sites. Instead, ~21% were found to possess the resistant mutation at the L925I site (haplotype B), ~77% had mutations at both the V419L and L925I sites (haplotype C), and 2% possessed the mutation at the L936F site (haplotype Ab). The high frequency of haplotype C corresponds to previous studies in the United States, and contrasts dramatically with those of the Old World and Australia. The data presented here provide insight into the contemporary occurrence of kdr-associated insecticide resistance in the South Central United States, a region for which data have previously been absent. These data suggest that New World and Old World/Australian infestations are likely to have originated from different origins.
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Early evidence of establishment of the tropical bedbug ( Cimex hemipterus ) in Central Europe
In recent decades, the world has witnessed a remarkable resurgence of bedbugs (Hemiptera: Cimicidae). Although populations of the common bedbug,
- Award ID(s):
- 1754394
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10446486
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Medical and Veterinary Entomology
- Volume:
- 35
- Issue:
- 3
- ISSN:
- 0269-283X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 462-467
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Background The common bed bug,
Cimex lectularius L., is a hematophagous ectoparasite that was a common pest in poultry farms through the 1960s. Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and organophosphates eradicated most infestations, but concurrent with their global resurgence as human ectoparasites, infestations of bed bugs have been reappearing in poultry farms. Although the impact of bed bugs on chicken health has not been quantified, frequent biting and blood-feeding are expected to cause stress, infections and even anemia in birds. Bed bug control options are limited due to the sensitive nature of the poultry environment, limited products labeled for bed bug control and resistance of bed bug populations to a broad spectrum of active ingredients. Veterinary drugs are commonly used to control endo- and ectoparasites in animals. In this study, we evaluated the effects of two common veterinary drugs on bed bugs by treating the host with systemic antiparasitic drugs.Methods We conducted dose–response studies of ivermectin and fluralaner against several bed bug strains using a membrane feeding system. Also, different doses of these drugs were given to chickens and two delivery methods (topical treatment and ingestion) were used to evaluate the efficacy of ivermectin and fluralaner on bed bug mortality.
Results Using an artificial feeding system, both ivermectin and fluralaner caused high mortality in insecticide-susceptible bed bugs, and fluralaner was found to be effective on pyrethroid- and fipronil-resistant bed bugs. Ivermectin was ineffective in chickens either by the topical treatment or ingestion, whereas bed bugs that fed on chickens which had ingested fluralaner suffered high mortality when feeding on these chickens for up to 28 days post treatment.
Conclusions These findings suggest that systemic ectoparasitic drugs have great potential for practical use to control bed bug infestations in poultry farms. These findings also demonstrate the efficacy of fluralaner (and potentially other isoxazolines) as a potent new active ingredient for bed bug control.
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Abstract As populations differentiate across geographic or host‐association barriers, interpopulation fertility is often a measure of the extent of incipient speciation. The bed bug,
Cimex lectularius L., was recently found to form two host‐associated lineages within Europe: one found with humans (human‐associated, HA) and the other found with bats (bat‐associated, BA). No unequivocal evidence of contemporary gene flow between these lineages has been found; however, it is unclear whether this is due to an inability to produce viable “hybrid” offspring. To address this question and determine the extent of compatibility between host‐associated lineages, we set up mating crosses among populations of bed bugs based on both their host association (human—HA vs. bat—BA) and geographic origin (North America vs. Europe). Within‐population fecundity was significantly higher for all HA populations (>1.7 eggs/day) than for BA populations (<1 egg/day). However, all within‐population crosses, regardless of host association, had >92% egg hatch rates. Contrary to previous reports, in all interlineage crosses, successful matings occurred, fertile eggs were oviposited, and the F1“hybrid” generation was found to be reproductively viable. In addition, we evaluated interpopulation genetic variation inWolbachia among host‐associated lineages. We did not find any clear patterns related to host association, nor did we observe a homogenization ofWolbachia lineages across populations that might explain a breakdown of reproductive incompatibility. These results indicate that while the HA and BA populations ofC. lectularius represent genetically differentiated host‐associated lineages, possibly undergoing sympatric speciation, this is in its incipient stage as they remain reproductively compatible. Other behavioral, physiological, and/or ecological factors likely maintain host‐associated differentiation. -
Abstract In recent years, bed bugs have experienced a remarkable resurgence on a near global scale. While reports have primarily focused on the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius (L.), which has resurged largely in temperate regions, in tropical regions the tropical bed bug, Cimex hemipterus (F.) (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), has reemerged as well. Recent reports of C. hemipterus introductions to subtropical and temperate regions, outside of the species natural distribution, suggest the potential for establishment and further spread. Establishment may be aided by insecticide resistance mechanisms, such as the presence of knockdown resistance (kdr)-associated mutations, which potentially confer resistance to pyrethroid, pyrethrin, and organochloride insecticides. Here, we present the first report of the detection and likely establishment of C. hemipterus in Honolulu, Hawaii, from samples collected in 2009 and 2019. Furthermore, through partial sequencing of the voltage-gated sodium channel, we report the presence of kdr-associated mutations in all samples. These findings have implications for the implementation of control strategies aimed at eradicating infestations.more » « less
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Abstract The origins of geographic races in wide‐ranging species are poorly understood. In Texas, the
texanus subspecies ofHelianthus annuus has long been thought to have acquired its defining phenotypic traits via introgression from a local congener,H. debilis , but previous tests of this hypothesis were inconclusive. Here, we explore the origins ofH. a. texanus using whole genome sequencing data from across the entire range ofH. annuus and possible donor species, as well as phenotypic data from a common garden study. We found that although it is morphologically convergent withH. debilis ,H. a. texanus has conflicting signals of introgression. Genome wide tests (Patterson'sD andTreeMix ) only found evidence of introgression fromH. argophyllus (sister species toH. annuus and also sympatric), but notH. debilis , with the exception of one individual of 109 analysed. We further scanned the genome for localized signals of introgression usingPCAdmix and found minimal but nonzero introgression fromH. debilis and significant introgression fromH. argophyllus in some populations. Given the paucity of introgression fromH. debilis , we argue that the morphological convergence observed in Texas is probably from standing genetic variation. We also found that genomic differentiation inH. a. texanus is mostly driven by large segregating inversions, several of which have signatures of natural selection based on haplotype frequencies.
