Latest news with #StephenRich
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Donkey skin as tick repellent? Mass. researchers say it could be more effective than DEET
Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst say a naturally occurring compound secreted by the skin of donkeys can effectively repel the most common human-biting tick. In fact, they assert it can be as effective, if not more so, than DEET, one of most common active ingredients in commercial insect repellents. Deer ticks are responsible for spreading Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and babesiosis in humans, and their presence in Massachusetts and more broadly New England has been on the rise due to climbing temperatures and a more moderate climate. Microbiologist Stephen Rich, executive director of the New England Center of Excellence in Vector-borne Diseases at UMass Amherst, said there is a strong public desire for 'natural' means of killing and repelling ticks. Read more: Researchers discover novel bacteria linked to deadly fever in New England ticks While repellents containing DEET are safe when used as directed, some people simply don't like their chemical nature. The sebaceous glands of horses and donkeys create secretions that include allomones — chemical substances that affect the behavior of other plant and animal species. Previous research has shown ticks that feed off horses, but not donkeys, will be repelled when donkey skin secretion is used to mask the horses' smell. 'So, to ticks, the horse doesn't smell like the host they're used to,' said doctoral student Eric Siegel, lead author of the research published in the journal PLOS One. 'The ticks don't like it, and so they won't feed on it. Our assessment that we can repel ticks with this compound means that in theory we could either put it on ourselves or put it on dogs, and the ticks will not want to go near it.' Siegel said lab work conducted in 2023 showed donkey skin secretion can be as effective, 'or more so,' than DEET. It was also more effective with male ticks than females, he said. Read more: White-tailed deer blood may hold the key to fighting Lyme disease, UMass study finds The research is a collaboration with Gearjump Technologies, a research and development firm, to work on the creation of a deer tick repellent containing octenal — the donkey compound — as the active ingredient. 'One avenue is, can we substitute the use of pesticides and use this in the environment to repel ticks?' Siegel said. This is how much untreated wastewater went into the Connecticut River last year Beloved copper beech at Mount Holyoke College tells stories after its demise Mass. Appeals Court says 'Frankenpermit' for disputed Palmer Renewable Energy biomass plant still valid EPA officially terminates $20 million grant to Springfield Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New strain of bacteria in tick discovered at UMass Amherst
AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) – A lab at the University of Massachusetts Amherst discovered a new strain of bacteria in a tick last week. Researchers found that this has the potential to infect people with Spotted Fever, and now, with the warmer weather and more people outside, officials are sounding the alarm. This finding came from testing in someone's backyard, but now researchers are hoping this was an exception and not the expectation. Western Massachusetts sees record spring temperatures Spotted Fever Rickettsioses is the main danger of bacteria found in this new strain of Rickettsia. The UMass lab working on Project ITCH is a part of the New England Center of Excellence in Vector-Borne Diseases. 22News spoke with microbiologist Stephen Rich, who told us how they came upon the discovery. 'As part of that study, we actually tested for a rare set of pathogens that we usually don't see, and we discovered something that's altogether different that we've never seen before,' Rich said. The study tracks how tick control across the U.S. is working in different areas. These samples are collected from across the country and sent here to UMass Amherst, but this new strain was actually collected in New England by the University of Maine. 'In California, that was found in people, so it can get into people and it can be deadly,' Rich said. 'In this case, we saw it in rabbit ticks, which don't feed on people, and so we think we're catching it very early here in the east.' This new genotype of Rickettsia, species ME2023, could infect people with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. The rare disease can be fatal without treatment. While there is no way to stop the spread of this bacteria among ticks, researchers will be keeping an eye on this new data. 'The main thing is that we want to make sure that it's in this rare tick that doesn't feed on people,' Rich said. 'What we want to make sure is that it doesn't spill over into other ticks that do feed on people.' Luckily, there is no current risk to the public, but the CDC says you should wear tick repellent and long sleeves while walking through wooded areas. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
