- An outbreak of pesticide-resistant bedbugs has confounded
experts who believed the blood-sucking insect had been eradicated from
Britain in the 1980s.
-
- Research published by the Institute of Biology has revealed
a rise in bedbug infestations in hotels and hostels throughout London.
-
- However, Clive Boase, an international expert, said the
problem is much more widespread. Mr Boase, from the Haverhill-based Pest
Management Consultancy, who carried out the research, said: "The problem
is prevalent in most parts of the UK to a greater or lesser extent."
-
- He blames modern lifestyles for the rise in infestations.
"Every time we move on, there is a chance we are taking a few bedbugs
with us."
-
- Increased sales of second-hand furniture, in which the
bugs may be hiding, was another explanation although that was unlikely
to account for the growth of infestations in up-market hotels.
-
- Mr Boase added: "The problem exists in many homes
as well as hotels. We can't just blame tourists because the bugs are spread
by business people as well. We are looking at the possibility that bedbugs
have become resistant to insecticides used to control them in the past."
-
- Bedbugs take more blood in a single feed than any other
insect and can cause allergic reactions and anaemia. Experts believe a
single pregnant female can become a colony of several thousand within a
year and infestations can spread from room to room within weeks. When deprived
of blood, individual bugs can survive for a year or more, allowing infestations
to persist in empty properties or stored furniture.
-
- Writing in the institute's magazine Biologist , Mr Boase
added: "They spend almost all their lives hidden in the seams of mattresses,
behind headboards, skirting boards, in curtains and even underneath fitted
carpets. They are seldom found living on clothing or people."
-
- By the 1980s bedbugs had been eradicated in many developed
countries, including the UK. However, Mr Boase said: "Since 1995 there
has been an unexpected upturn in reports of bug infestations in the UK,
USA and other countries. He said reports from pest-control companies, local
authorities and hotel chains alerted experts to the problem.
-
- © 2004 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/environment/story.jsp?story=511245
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-
- More On Hep B In Bedbugs
- From Shari 4-17-4
-
- Assessment of hepatitis B virus DNA and hepatitis C virus
RNA in the common bedbug (Cimex lectularius L.) and kissing bug (Rodnius
prolixus).
-
- Abstract
-
- OBJECTIVE: Historical clinical studies suggest the potential
for insect-borne transmission of human hepatitis viruses. Studies of hepatitis
B virus (HBV) persistence in insects were performed before the advent of
molecular techniques, and studies to assess possible insect-borne transmission
of hepatitis viruses have not yet been performed. The aim of this study
was to determine, using molecular techniques, whether HBV and hepatitis
C virus (HCV) persist in and are excreted in the feces of the bedbug Cimex
lectularius L. and kissing bug Rodnius prolixus after an infectious meal.
-
- METHODS: Blood-feeding insects from the insect order
Hemiptera (Cimex lectularius L. and Rhodnius prolixus) were fed on blood
from infected patients with high titers of HBV, HCV, and control uninfected
patients. Insects and insect excrement were collected at weekly intervals
and tested for HBV DNA and HCV RNA using the polymerase chain reaction.
-
- RESULTS: HBV DNA was detected in bedbugs and excrement
up to 6 wk after feeding on an infectious meal. HBV DNA was also detected
in most kissing bugs and excrement up to 2 wk after feeding. HCV RNA was
not detected in bedbugs at any time after feeding.
-
- CONCLUSIONS: We did not detect HCV RNA in bedbugs after
feeding on an infectious meal. Our data provide molecular evidence to suggest
that HBV may persist in Hemiptera. Additional studies are ongoing to determine
whether this viral persistence is capable of infection.
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