Mosquitoes Associate Deet With Blood, Study Shows
SkimNews Take
Mosquitoes' learned association between DEET and a blood meal suggests that the repellent's effectiveness may be compromised by the very act of feeding when it's present.
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- Mosquitoes learned to associate DEET with feeding, demonstrating Pavlovian conditioning.
- Trained mosquitoes showed a 60% biting rate when later exposed only to DEET, compared with 17% of untrained insects.
- Deet‑treated hand attracted nearly 60% of trained mosquitoes, while untrained mosquitoes universally avoided it.
- UK Health Security Agency recommends 50% DEET products as the first choice for protection against mosquito‑borne diseases.
- Prof Claudio Lazzari said the findings change understanding of repellents but emphasized DEET remains effective under normal use.
Why it matters: Travelers and health officials gain confidence that DEET remains protective, as the study shows only 60% of trained mosquitoes are attracted versus 17% of untrained, implying limited real‑world risk.
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