Bed Bug Biology/Behavior andResearch Update

Dr. Susan C. JonesProfessor of Entomology

©Graphicmaps.com

Cimex lectularius: the bed bug(Hemiptera: Cimicidae)

Only feed on blood Prefer humans Alternate hosts—dogs,

cats, rats, birds, etc. Typically feed at night Cause significant

economic, physical, & mental distress

bedbugfoundation.org

Unfed adults: ~1/4 to 3/8 inch

long

0.2 inch

The Human Factor

• Denial of a bed bug problem/stigma• Incorrect identification• Ignorance of bed bugs and

management strategies • Do-it-yourself mentality• Money • Clutter• Mental health problems • Physical incapacity• Etc.

Some of the challenges due to landlords/management and/or residents:

bedbugfoundation.org

Unfed adults: ~1/4 to 3/8 inch

long

0.2 inch

Total developmental time (egg to adult):

21 days @ 86F 120 days @ 65F

The Bed Bug Factor

• Slender profile; hide in many sites from floor to ceiling

• Strong tendency to disperse– Hitchhiking– Walking

• Can feed on multiple warm-blooded animals• Bites cause variable reactions in humans• Can survive starvation for long periods• Insecticide resistance • Etc.

Some of the challenges due to bed bugs:

BED BUG HABITS• Cannot fly• Can walk very fast• Typically hide during the day in dark, protected sites (esp. cracks & crevices)• Prefer fabric, wood, and paper surfaces • Can cling tightly to surfaces

In Electrical Outlets

Behind A Hanging Picture

Some bed bug hiding places

In Carpeting

In Furniture

BED BUG HIDING PLACES Mattress, box springs Bed frame Furniture Carpeting Cracks and crevices Carpet tack strips Baseboards Window frames, door frames Electric outlets, switch plates Wall hangings, pictures Drapery pleats, window blinds Smoke detectors Ceiling moldings etc.

PREFERRED

SURFACES:

• Fabric

• Wood

• Paper

Reasons why residents should not dispose of

furniture, mattresses, etc.:

• Bed bugs will fall off the furniture as it is being moved, hence spreading the problem.

• Infested furniture usually can be treated.• Bed bugs can quickly infest replacement

furniture.• Items placed in dumpsters often are picked

up and reused, thereby spreading bed bugs to other households.

How do bed bugs travel?

• Walking• from an infested room to new

territory• from one apartment to another

via pipes, electrical wires, cables, …

• down a hallway after dropping off an item

• Hitchhiking

In multi-family housing, bed bugs readily spread to units that are adjacent, below,

and above the infested unit.

Bed bugs are very good hitchhikers!

• luggage• furniture• bedding• backpacks, purses, briefcases• clothing• …

Bed bugs can be moved from one place to another by hiding in:

--Bed Bug Hitchhikers—in walker & wheelchair

Photos courtesy of General Pest Control Co.

Bed Bug Hitchhikers in Luggage

--Bed Bug Hitchhikers—in shoe tread

--Bed Bug Hitchhikers—on shoes

Total of 5 bed bugs

http://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/2/2/232

Test conditions:79-80 °F (~26.5 °C)

69% RH

• Often closely associated with hosts’ sleeping or resting sites (hide in many places)

• Locate their host using cues such as carbon dioxide, heat, odor

• Typically feed at night

Bed Bug Feeding Habits

Sharp beak-like mouthparts penetrate the skin:

The Mechanics of Biting

Photo: Harvard Univ.

mandibles and maxillae

(at tip of fascicle)

(very flexible; thrust

about into tissues until a

suitable blood

vessel is reached)

styletfascicle

(driven into skin to anchor

the stylet fascicle)

labium

bed-bugs.com

Health Effects from Bed Bugs• Skin reactions (7 of 10 people on avg.)

• Redness• Welts• Itching

• Secondary bacterial infections • Anemia• Asthma• Anaphylactic shock• Psychological effects• Sleeplessness• Agitation• Anxiety• Insecticide exposure • …

August 2010

Bed bugs are a pest of significant

public health importance!

http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/Publications/Bed_Bugs_CDC-EPA_Statement.htmhttp://www.epa.gov/pesticides/bedbugs/

CDC & EPA Joint

Statement

urticariaatypical bullous lesions

common distribution of skin lesions

Clinical Manifestations of Bed Bug Bites (Cimicosis)

• Typically on exposed skin • Often in groups or rows

Permanent scars from bed bug bites

wasp

Diagnosis of Bed Bug Bites

• Diagnosis of a bed bug bite is speculative.• Confirmation is based on bed bug evidence.

• Resemble bites from other insects/arthropods• Typically no red puncture spot at the center (such as with fleas and black flies)• Rarely occur on the palms or soles (such as with scabies mites)• …

If you wake up with itchy, red welts that weren’t there when you went to bed,

perhaps its bed bugs.

2009. JAMA 301(13): 1358-1366.

“There are few data to support bed bugs as vectors for transmission of

human disease agents. … transmission of a human disease is

yet to be firmly established.”

Delaunay et al. 2011

Carry 40+ human pathogens (Goddard and deShazo 2009)

Recent studies have targeted specific pathogens

• Hepatitis B, C (Blow et al. 2001, Silverman et al. 2001)

• HIV (Webb et al. 1989)• Bacteria (Lowe and Romney 2011,

Cockburn et al. 2013, Leuimi et al. 2015)

• Trypanosoma cruzi (Blakely et al. 2014, Salazar et al. 2015)

Role in Disease

Known Disease-Transmitting Hemipterans (True Bugs)

Reduviidae: triatomine bugs (kissing bugs) Transmit Chagas disease via feces Defecate on host while feeding Transmission occurs when feces are

rubbed into bite wound or mucous membrane (cdc.gov)

biologyacademie.blogspot.com

Hemotek artificial feeder Warms blood in

reservoirs Parafilm membrane Defibrinated rabbit

blood

Rattus norvegicus (naked rats) Wire mesh tubes w/

snap cap ends

Materials & Methods

— OSU Research—Courtney L. Darrington

MS, OSU Department of Entomology (2015)

Bed bugs defecate in close proximity to their feeding site (avg. 1-2.5 cm [0.4-1 inch]) Artificial feeder Live host (naked rats)

Bed bugs defecate soon after feeding (5-120 sec) Repletion status greatly influences whether bugs defecate Defecation Index (DI) of 2.57 for adult bed bugs suggests a high

potential to infect a host DI of 3.08 in females supports suggestion in triatomines that females are the most epidemiologically important stage

— OSU Research—Courtney L. Darrington

MS, OSU Department of Entomology (2015)

(2015). 9(5): e0003789. doi:10.1371

The bacterium was detected in the feces and bodies (digestive tract) of bed bugs at the 3rd day

post-infection, and it persisted for ~2.5 weeks.

Bed Bugs and Trench Fever

Imagine Sleeping In These Conditions

Imagine Sleeping In These Conditions

Columbus, OH 4/26/11

Pesticide exposure due to misuse

Columbus, OH 6/28/12

Did you check for signs of bed bugs in your hotel/motel room when you last traveled?

BED BUG PREVENTION FOR TRAVELERS

Make it STANDARD PRACTICE to check for bed bugs in hotel/motel rooms! • Pull back the bedding and look for black fecal

spots on mattress & box springs (especially seams)

• Carefully examine the underside of the bed skirt• Look for bb signs along bed frame (especially

head board)• Open nightstand drawers and look for bb signs

along inner and outer edges• Look for bb signs along baseboards DON’T STAY IN A ROOM THAT HAS BB SIGNS

BED BUG PREVENTION FOR TRAVELERS

• Keep clothes in your zipped suitcase• Don’t keep clothes in hotel chest-of-drawers • OK to hang clothes in closet

• Don’t store your suitcase on the bed, floor, or upholstered furniture

• Keep your suitcase on the luggage rack (after first inspecting it for bb signs)

Reduce the chances of getting bed bugs from hotel/motel rooms!

• The bathroom (tub) is the best place to store your items!

Sticky traps typically

are not very useful for

detecting bed bugs.

Sticky Traps

Bed Bug Detector Trap

--Passive Monitoring Devices--

--Passive Monitoring Devices--

Bed Bug Interceptors• Positioned under furniture legs• Furniture must be kept in use—bugs are

attracted to host’s CO2

• Pitfall trap—bed bugs climb in and cannot escape*

– *Inner walls of ClimbUps must be kept lubricated with talcum powder or bugs can escape

• Eliminate alternative ways for bugs to access furniture (don’t let bugs bypass interceptors)

• Keep furniture several inches away from walls• Don’t let bed linens, dust ruffle, & bedding

contact the floor or walls

ClimbUp® Interceptor

LightsOut® Interceptor

bed leg

FMC Verifi™ Bed Bug Detector

http://www.fmcprosolutions.com/BedBugs/PropertyManager/Home.aspx

A- CO2 booster pack

B- lures (pheromone + kairomone)C- pitfall trap areaD- harborage area

E- self-adhesive sticker

--Active Monitoring Device--

Front view (with cut away revealing interior components)

Rear view

No longer manufactured

Rutgers University Field Study

August 2011

‘Detection Tools and

Techniques’

By: Changlu Wang and Richard Cooper

Canine team performance

(7 firms; 24 apts.)Average Range

Inspection time 150 minutes 100-250 min.

Cost $750 $500-1,000

Detection rate 43% 11-83%False positive rate

(signaling bed bugs that weren’t there)

  0-38%

Much variability among canine detection firms.

Can be a useful tool in large-scale inspections.

The liners consist of finely woven polyester fabric impregnated with 1.64%

permethrin. The liners are kept in place on mattresses and

box springs beneath bedding.

Bed bugs were not repelled from ActiveGuard™ liners

TreatmentControlB B AG B B = Blank fabricAG = ActiveGuard fabric

— OSU Research—

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—OSU Research—Bed Bug Contact Bioassay

Contact with ActiveGuard fabric caused bed bugs from susceptible

and moderately resistant populations to die within ~1 day; a highly resistant population (Marcia) began dying after ~4 days exposure.

—OSU Research Results—

Bed Bug Feeding Bioassay

ActiveGuard

Proportion (mean ± SEM) of feeding attempts and successful feedings by adult female bed bugs following brief exposure to

permethrin-impregnated or untreated fabric:

ActiveGuard

Exposure to ActiveGuard fabric for 1 or 10 min

significantly decreased the likelihood that a bed bug

attempted to feed.

Exposure to ActiveGuard fabric for 10 min significantly

decreased the likelihood that a bed bug successfully fed.

Statistically similar responses among 5 bed bug populations ranging from highly susceptible to extremely resistant

INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT (IPM) :

Correctly identify the pest +

Conduct a thorough inspection+

Use sanitation measures+

Use non-chemical measures +

Apply insecticides to targeted sites

Some Basics of Bed Bug Management Using

Insecticides• There is no single “magic bullet”.• Bed bug control typically takes

several treatments.• It is important to use several different

formulations, and often, several different insecticides.

• A residual insecticide is necessary.• Don’t keep using the same

insecticide (rotate insecticide use)

March 14, 2013

http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/130314/srep01456/pdf/srep01456.pdf

Resistance genes were very active in the bed bug exoskeleton (skin).

Pyrethroid Resistance Categorization of Bed Bug Populations

— OSU Research—

Highly pyrethroid resistant bed bugs do not show adverse effects, even when exposed to very high concentrations of

dry deposits of technical deltamethrin.

Active Ingredient(insecticide class) Product Name(s)

Imidacloprid + ß-cyfluthrin(neonicotinoid + pyrethroid) Temprid® SC

Chlorfenapyr(halogenated pyrrole)

Phantom® SCPhantom® PI

Acetamiprid + bifenthrin(neonicotinoid + pyrethroid)

Transport® MikronTransport® GHP

Thiamethoxam + λ-cyhalothrin(neonicotinoid + pyrethroid) Tandem®

Dinotefuran + diatomaceous earth

(neonicotinoid + silica dioxide)

Prescription Treatment Alpine® Dust

Alpine® PI

Amorphous silica gel CimeXa™

Neem seed oil(azadirachtin)

Cirkil™ CXCirkil™ RTU

Some pyrethroid alternatives for use against bed bugs:

— OSU Research —Effectiveness of combination insecticides against bed bugs

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� Results �Direct Spray

Pyrethroid susceptible bugs

Rapid bed bug mortality is achieved

through directly spraying bed bugs.

Pyrethroid resistant bugs

Even with highly resistant bed bugs the bugs quickly died after being sprayed with any of the 3 insecticides. Evidence of contact toxicity.

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Efficacy of Temprid SC Residues on Plywood and Fabric Aged for 6 mo (182 d)

highly resistant

moderately resistant

susceptible

Brief exposure (hours) to a residual insecticide caused rapid death of pyrethroid-susceptible bed bugs, but not highly pyrethroid-resistant bed bugs.

Resistant bugs had to spend days in direct contact with the dry residues. Temprid had long lasting residual.

Words of caution regarding over-the-counter ‘natural

products’ for bed bug control:

• Exempt from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration

• EPA requires no efficacy data• Claims often based on “satisfied

customers”—be sure to ask for their research data and evaluate it carefully

• Botanical (plant based) products often have a strong odor

• Botanical products often have limited, if any, residual activity

25(b) Exempt Minimum Risk Natural Products

Condition 4: The label cannot include any false or misleading statements, and claims that minimum risk pesticides protect human or public health are prohibited.

Must meet five conditions, including:

Rutgers Univ. 2014 Study: Natural Pesticides

Rutgers Univ. 2014 Study: Natural Pesticides

Rutgers Univ. 2014 Study: Natural Pesticides

25(b) Natural Products (exempt from EPA registration)

FTC takes actionThe FTC complaint charges that the Cedarcide defendants make:• false claims that scientific studies prove Best Yet! is effective at

stopping and preventing bed bug infestations, and that it is more effective than synthetic pesticides at doing so;

• a false claim that the Environmental Protection Agency has warned consumers to avoid all synthetic pesticides for treating bed bug infestations;

• …• false claims that Best Yet! was invented for the U.S. Army at the

request of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and that the USDA has acknowledged the product as the number one choice of bio-based pesticides

The FTC complaint charges that the RMB Group defendants make unsupported claims that Rest Easy kills and repels bed bugs, and that a consumer can create a barrier against them by spraying the product around a bed.

http://ftc.gov/opa/2012/09/cedarcidermb.shtm

Acknowledgments

• Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force • Joint Bed Bug Task Force • Camille Jones• Greg Kesterman• Courtney Darrington• Josh Bryant• Nina Bogart• Kara Baker

Thank You!Sleep tight,

and don’t let the … … well, you know the rest

Questions?