Copper oxide-impregnated fabrics for the control of house dust mites

Authors: Mumcuoglu, Kosta¹; Gabbay, Jeffrey²; Borkow, Gadi²

Source: International Journal of Pest Management, Volume 54, Number 3, July 2008 , pp. 235-240(6)

Publisher: Taylor and Francis Ltd

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Abstract:

Copper oxide (CuO) has broad-spectrum anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties. The aim of this study was to test the acaricidal efficacy of CuO-impregnated fabrics on the common house dust mite, Dermatophagoides farinae. The overall vitality/mobility of the mites was reduced when they were exposed to the CuO-impregnated fabrics and, when possible, the dust mites migrated to fabrics where no CuO was present. The mortality of mites exposed for 10 days to fabrics containing 0.2% (w/w) CuO was significantly higher than the mortality of mites on control fabrics (72 ± 4 and 18.9 ± 0.3%, respectively). The mortality reached 95.4 and 100% with fabrics containing 0.4 and 2% CuO after 47 and 5 days, respectively. The acaricidal effect of copper oxide seems to be due to direct toxicity. The use of fabrics containing copper oxide may thus be an important avenue for reducing house dust mite populations, and for reducing the load of dust mite allergens.

Keywords: acaricide; house dust mites; allergy; copper oxide; fabrics; Dermatophagoides farinae; control

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1080/09670870802010856

Affiliations: 1: Department of Parasitology, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel 2: Cupron Inc., Greensboro, NC, USA

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