COMPOSITIONS FOR ATTRACTING PESTS AND USES THEREOF

Abstract

The present invention relates to compositions comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within an essential oil such as peppermint oil, for attracting pests, in particular acarids. The present invention also relates to methods and devices for attracting pests, in particular acarids.

Claims

1. A use of a composition comprising menthone for attracting pests selected from the group comprising: Acari, Cimicidae, Neuropterida, Thysanoptera, Psocodea, Polyneoptera, Paleoptera, Coleoptera, Strepsiptera, Mecoptera, Trichoptera, Siphonaptera, and Hymenoptera.

2. The use according to claim 1, wherein said composition comprises menthone at a concentration ranging from about 10.sup.12 mg/mL to about 100 mg/mL.

3. The use according to claim 1, wherein said composition comprises an essential oil, wherein said essential oil comprises said menthone.

4. The use according to claim 3, wherein said essential oil is selected from the group consisting of essential oils of: Mentha piperita, Mentha arvensis, Mentha canadensis, Mentha cervina, Mentha pulegium, Mentha aquatica, Mentha pulegioides and Mentha longifolia.

5. The use according to claim 3, wherein said essential oil is essential oil of Mentha piperita.

6. The use according to claim 3, wherein the concentration of said essential oil in the composition ranges from about 10.sup.15 to about 10.sup.1 L/L.

7. The use according to claim 1, wherein said composition comprises at least one additional attracting agent.

8. The use according to claim 7, wherein said at least one additional attracting agent is selected from the group consisting of: tartaric acid, lavender oil, linseed oil, octen-3-ol and acetic acid.

9. The use according to claim 1, wherein said composition further comprises: at least one solvent, at least one stabilizer, at least one emulsifier and/or at least one perfume.

10. The use according to claim 1, wherein said pests are further selected from the group consisting of: mites, ticks, ladybugs, fleas, lice, bed bugs, cockroaches and ants.

11. The use according to claim 1, wherein said pests are mites.

12. A method for attracting pests selected from the group comprising Acari, Cimicidae, Neuropterida, Thysanoptera, Psocodea, Polyneoptera, Paleoptera, Coleoptera, Strepsiptera, Mecoptera, Trichoptera, Siphonaptera, and Hymenoptera, comprising the following steps: a) contacting said support with a composition comprising menthone at a concentration ranging from about 10.sup.12 mg/mL to about 100 mg/mL or an essential oil comprising menthone, preferably essential oil of Mentha piperita, wherein the concentration of said essential oil in the composition ranges from about 10.sup.15 to about 10.sup.1 L/L; and b) positioning the support in a room or a place or at proximity to an object or a place suspected of containing said pests; wherein steps a) and b) can be interchanged.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said pests are selected from the group consisting of: mites, ticks, ladybugs, fleas, lice, bed bugs, cockroaches and ants.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein said pests are mites.

15. A kit for attracting pests selected from the group comprising Acari, Cimicidae, Neuropterida; Thysanoptera, Psocodea, Polyneoptera, Paleoptera, Coleoptera, Strepsiptera, Mecoptera, Trichoptera, Siphonaptera, and Hymenoptera, comprising: a composition comprising menthone at a concentration ranging from about 10.sup.12 mg/mL to about 100 mg/mL or an essential oil comprising menthone, preferably essential oil of Mentha piperita, wherein the concentration of said essential oil in the composition ranges from about 10.sup.15 to about 10.sup.1 L/L, and a support to hold said pests.

16. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step of providing a support to hold said pests.

17. The use according to claim 4, wherein said essential oil is essential oil of Mentha piperita.

18. The use according to claim 2, wherein said composition comprises an essential oil, wherein said essential oil comprises said menthone.

19. The use according to claim 18, wherein said essential oil is selected from the group consisting of essential oils of: Mentha piperita, Mentha arvensis, Mentha canadensis, Mentha cervina, Mentha pulegium, Mentha aquatica, Mentha pulegioides and Mentha longifolia.

20. The use according to claim 4, wherein the concentration of said essential oil in the composition ranges from about 10.sup.15 to about 10.sup.1 L/L.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0291] FIG. 1 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising menthone in attracting the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the rectangle of filter paper loaded with the composition comprising menthone at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two rectangles of filter paper. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards the rectangle of filter paper loaded with water (*: p-value <0.05).

[0292] FIG. 2 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising peppermint oil in attracting the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the rectangle of filter paper loaded with the composition comprising peppermint oil at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two rectangles of filter paper. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards water (*: p-value <0.05).

[0293] FIG. 3 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising menthone in attracting the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the support disc of vegetable fiber loaded with the composition comprising menthone at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two support discs of vegetable fibers. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards the support disc loaded with water (**: p-value <0.01).

[0294] FIG. 4 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising peppermint oil in attracting the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the support disc of vegetable fiber loaded with the composition comprising peppermint oil at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two support discs of vegetable fibers. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards the support disc loaded with water (**: p-value <0.01).

[0295] FIG. 5 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising menthone in attracting the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the support disc of vegetable fiber loaded with the composition comprising menthone at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two support discs of vegetable fibers. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards the support disc loaded with water (*: p-value <0.05).

[0296] FIG. 6 is a graph showing the mean efficiency of compositions comprising peppermint oil in attracting the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae. The mean efficiency corresponds to the mean percentage of mite individuals which moved towards the support disc of vegetable fiber loaded with the composition comprising peppermint oil at the indicated concentration (L/L), calculated from the number of individuals which moved towards one of the two support discs of vegetable fibers. Asterisks indicate a significative difference by comparison with the mites which moved towards the support disc loaded with water (**: p-value <0.01; ***: p-value <0.001).

EXAMPLES

[0297] The present invention is further illustrated by the following examples.

Example 1

Materials and Methods

Material

Mites

[0298] Experiments were conducted with species of storage mites, i.e Tyrophagus putrescentiae and with species of dust mites, i.e., Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae.

Mite Rearing

[0299] Tyrophagus putrescentiae was fed with a mixture composed of 2 parts of powdered laboratory animal food, 2 parts of dried yeast and 1 part of dried fish powder (Miyamoto et al., 1975).

[0300] Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae were fed with a 1:1:1 mixture of dried powdered yeast, human skin taken from electric shavers and dog food (Larson et al., 1969; Andersen, 1988).

[0301] All mites were reared under defined conditions. The humidity was kept between 70 and 80% through the use of a saturated solution of sodium chloride (Solomon, 1951). Mites rearings were placed in an incubator set at 25° C. (Miyamoto et al., 1975).

Menthone

[0302] A composition comprising menthone was prepared by diluting liquid menthone with a density of 0.894 (mixture of stereoisomers L-menthone and D-isomenthone, with 98% purity, from Alfa Aesar, Haverhill, USA) in water to obtain a concentration of 0.1 μl/mL (i.e., 10.sup.−4 L/L), corresponding to a concentration of about 0.0894 mg/mL or a concentration of about 0.00894% (w/v). Said composition has a molar concentration of menthone of about 0.58 mM.

[0303] Compositions comprising menthone at different concentrations were prepared by serial dilutions in water of the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−4 L/L (from 10.sup.−4 L/L to 10.sup.−8 L/L, i.e., from about 0.0894 mg/mL to about 8.94 ng/mL) and their capacity to attract acarids was tested.

[0304] Hereafter, said compositions prepared from liquid menthone are referred to as “compositions comprising menthone alone” or “compositions comprising menthone”.

Peppermint Oil

[0305] A composition comprising peppermint oil (also known as essential oil of Mentha piperita), which itself comprises menthone, was prepared by diluting peppermint oil with a density of 0.898 g/mL (natural peppermint oil from Mentha piperita L., Sigma, St Louis, USA) in water to obtain a concentration of 0.1 μl/mL (i.e., 10.sup.−4 L/L), corresponding to a concentration of about 0.0898 mg/mL or a concentration of about 0.00898% (w/v). Compositions comprising peppermint oil at different concentrations were prepared by serial dilutions in water of the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−4 L/L (from 10.sup.−4 L/L to 10.sup.−6 L/L, i.e., from about 0.0898 mg/mL to about 0.898 μg/mL) and their capacity to attract acarids was tested.

[0306] Hereafter, said compositions prepared from peppermint oil are referred to as “compositions comprising menthone within peppermint oil” or “compositions comprising peppermint oil”.

Methods

Two-Choice Bioassays for Tyrophagus Putrescentiae

[0307] The experimental protocol was inspired by the quantitative choice bioassay run by Synder et al., in 1993. Said bioassay consisted of two rectangles of filter paper of equal dimensions, positioned so as to be parallel to each other and less than 2 cm apart in a petri dish with a 6 cm diameter. 10 μL microliters of the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, were loaded on one rectangle and 10 μL of solvent (i.e., water) were loaded on the other as a control. After the solvent evaporated, a small strip of filter paper was used to bridge the rectangles. A group of 30-40 mites was then transferred to the middle of the bridge and their movements were observed. The rectangle for which they exited the bridge was recorded. Each assay comprised two sets of rectangles of filter paper connected with a bridge, with the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, loaded on opposing rectangles in each set (e.g., rectangle on the left in the first set, and rectangle on the right in the second set). Data were submitted to Fisher analysis.

Two-Choice Bioassays for Dermatophagoides farinae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus

[0308] Responses of Dermatophagoides spp. to compositions comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, were tested in a two-choice bioassay as described in Otieno et al., 1985. Said bioassay comprised two support discs made of vegetable fiber (with a diameter of 1.7 cm), i.e., a test support and a control support, placed in a Petri dish (with a diameter of 6 cm) kept at 20-28° C. in the dark at 30% humidity. Compositions comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, (50 μL or less) were applied via a syringe to the test support. The control support was loaded with water only. An appropriate number of mites were placed in the center of the dish, equidistant from the test support and the control support. The bioassay system was then left for 24 hr or less at 20-28° C. in the dark at 30% humidity before a count of the mites assembled on the test support and on the control support was made. Several replicates were run for each test.

Statistics

[0309] Statistical significance was assessed using a Fisher's exact test.

Results

[0310] The attracting properties of compositions comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, were tested in the experimental set-ups described hereinabove on the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae, the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae. The results are presented in Table 1, Table 2, FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 for Tyrophagus putrescentiae, in Table 3, Table 4, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 for Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, and in Table 5, Table 6, FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 for Dermatophagoides farinae. The mean efficiency corresponds to the percentage of mites attracted to the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, at the indicated concentration.

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Attracting properties of compositions comprising menthone on Tyrophagus putrescentiae Concentration Number of Mean Standard Fisher's exact (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation test (p-value) 10.sup.−4 5 50 11 NS 10.sup.−5 7 47 11 NS 10.sup.−6 13 57 7 * 10.sup.−7 7 53 9 NS 10.sup.−8 7 49 11 NS NS: not significant; *: p-value <0.05

[0311] 57% of the individuals which moved towards a rectangle of filter paper, moved towards the rectangle of filter paper loaded with the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of menthone of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.05). The data thus demonstrate that the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L significantly attracts Tyrophagus putrescentiae.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Attracting properties of compositions comprising peppermint oil on Tyrophagus putrescentiae Concentration Number of Mean Standard Fisher's exact (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation test (p-value) 10.sup.−5 7 49.10 11.75 NS 10.sup.−6 8 67.41 21.47 * 10.sup.−7 8 52.59 16.40 NS NS: not significant; *: p-value <0.05

[0312] 67% of the individuals which moved towards a rectangle of filter paper, moved towards the rectangle of filter paper loaded with the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−6 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of peppermint oil of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL, rather than towards water (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.05). The data thus demonstrate that the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−6 L/L significantly attracts Tyrophagus putrescentiae.

TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 Attracting properties of compositions comprising menthone on Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus Concentration Number of Mean Standard Fisher's exact (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation test (p-value) 10.sup.−4 4 42 12 NS 10.sup.−5 3 50 26 NS 10.sup.−6 6 67 15 ** 10.sup.−7 3 42 10 NS NS: not significant; **: p-value <0.01

[0313] 67% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of menthone of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.01). The data thus demonstrate that the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L significantly attracts Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus.

TABLE-US-00004 TABLE 4 Attracting properties of compositions comprising peppermint oil on Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus Fisher's Concentration Number of Mean Standard exact test (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation (p-value) 10.sup.−4 4 50.74 25.13 NS 10.sup.−5 6 69.45 11.94 ** 10.sup.−6 3 47.27 3.49 NS NS: not significant; **: p-value <0.01

[0314] 69% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc, moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of peppermint oil of about 9×10.sup.−3 mg/mL, rather than towards water (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.01). The data thus demonstrate that the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L significantly attracts Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus.

TABLE-US-00005 TABLE 5 Attracting properties of compositions comprising menthone on Dermatophagoides farinae Concentration Number of Mean Standard Fisher's exact (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation test (p-value) 10.sup.−4 4 41 12 NS 10.sup.−5 3 40 11 NS 10.sup.−6 4 62 15 * 10.sup.−7 3 49 14 NS 10.sup.−8 4 51 21 NS NS: not significant; *: p-value <0.05

[0315] 62% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of menthone of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.05). The data thus demonstrate that the compositions comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L significantly attracts Dermatophagoides farinae.

TABLE-US-00006 TABLE 6 Attracting properties of compositions comprising peppermint oil on Dermatophagoides farinae Concentration Number of Mean Standard Fisher's exact (L/L) experiments efficiency (%) deviation test (p-value) 10.sup.−2 3 16.27 8.78 *** 10.sup.−3 3 94.73 1.56 *** 10.sup.−4 3 73.96 27.21 ** 10.sup.−5 6 76.02 17.8 *** 10.sup.−6 3 81.22 3.77 *** 10.sup.−7 3 46.51 7.00 NS NS: not significant; **: p-value <0.01; ***: p-value <0.001

[0316] 95% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc, moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−3 L/L, corresponding to a concentration of peppermint oil of about 9×10.sup.−3 mg/mL, rather than towards water (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.001). Moreover, at 10.sup.−4 L/L, 74% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc, moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising peppermint oil (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.01); at 10.sup.−5 L/L; 76% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc, moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising peppermint oil (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.01); and at 10.sup.−6 L/L; 81% of the individuals which moved toward a vegetable fiber support disc, moved towards the test disc impregnated with the composition comprising peppermint oil (Fisher's exact test, p-value <0.001).

[0317] The data thus demonstrate that the composition comprising peppermint oil at concentrations ranging from 10.sup.−6 L/L to 10.sup.−3 L/L significantly attracts Dermatophagoides farinae.

Example 2

Materials and Methods

Material

Mites

[0318] The mites Tyrophagus putrescentiae, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae were reared under the conditions described in Example 1.

Menthone

[0319] A composition comprising menthone at a concentration of 10.sup.−6 L/L was prepared by diluting 1 μL liquid menthone as described hereinabove (mixture of stereoisomers L-menthone and D-isomenthone, with 98% purity, from Alfa Aesar, Haverhill, USA) in 1 L of water. Hereafter, said composition is referred to as “compositions comprising menthone alone” or “compositions comprising menthone”.

Peppermint Oil

[0320] A composition comprising peppermint oil at a concentration of 10.sup.−5 L/L was prepared by diluting 10 μL peppermint oil (natural peppermint oil from Mentha piperita L., Sigma, St Louis, USA) as described hereinabove in 1 L of water. Hereafter, said composition is referred to as “composition comprising menthone within peppermint oil” or “composition comprising peppermint oil”.

Methods

Simulated Use Tests

[0321] The aim of these tests was to mimic real-life utilization of the compositions for attracting pests of the invention and thus to assess the efficacity of said compositions in real-life conditions.

[0322] In order to simulate real-life utilization of the composition for attracting pests of the invention, a common household furniture such as a cushion was infested with living mites and treated with a composition comprising menthone at a concentration of 10.sup.−6 L/L (corresponding to a concentration of menthone of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL) or with a composition comprising peppermint oil at a concentration of 10.sup.−5 L/L (corresponding to a concentration of peppermint oil of about 9×10.sup.−3 mg/mL). As described in Japanese application JP2000336007 and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,415,545, the treatment consisted in laying a sheet on the infested household furniture and spraying the compositions to be tested over it. The number of attracted and unattracted mites was then counted to evaluate the efficacy of the tested composition. All the tests were run at 20-25° C. and 30-35% relative humidity, conditions normally found in households.

Step 1—Infestation of Cushions with Living Mites

[0323] Brand new cushions (43×30×6 cm, Tom&Co) were infested with 400 Tyrophagus putrescentiae, 100 Dermatophagoides farinae and 100 Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. The proportion of each species respected the average composition of natural mite populations that can be found in a pet basket: ⅔ of storage mites, ⅓ of house dust mites. Small pieces of dry dog food were spread over the cushions as a nourishment for mites. After the infestation, mites were allowed to settle down for 15 hours.

Step 2—Treatment of Infested Cushions

[0324] After 15 hours, a dark sheet was placed over the cushion to be treated. The size of the sheet was sufficient to cover the entire upper surface of the cushion (43×30 cm). The sheet was sprayed 6 times (total volume sprayed about 4 ml) with a composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, or with water (control), keeping the bottle at a distance of about 30 cm from the sheet to be sprayed. A dry control was also used, corresponding to an untreated sheet, i.e., a sheet that was not sprayed. Sprays were evenly distributed in order to cover the totality of the sheet. The sheet was left in place for 1 h. 3 replicates were run with the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, and 3 replicates were run with the control.

Step 3—Vacuuming of the Sheet and the Cushion

[0325] In order to determine the number of mites within an infested place, the usual method is to vacuum the infested place (Wassenaar 1988). Each sheet was vacuumed for 2 minutes using a special filter (as described in the European patent application EP0630478) that retains the collected dust. The dust sample was then analyzed (see Step 4) in order to determine the number of mites attracted by the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil. Similarly, after removal of the sheet, each cushion was vacuumed to determine the number of remaining mites (i.e., the number of mites that were not attracted by the composition comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil). The relative proportion of mites into the sheet and into the cushion determined the efficacy of the treatment (see Step 4).

Step 4—Analysis of Dust Samples

[0326] In order to quantify the mites present in the dust samples collected either from the sheets or from the cushions, the method described by Arlian et al. (1982) was applied. Each dust sample was resuspended in 25 ml of a saturated sodium chloride solution comprising a few drops of detergent. The suspension was then rinsed through a 235 mesh (45 μm opening) sieve and the mites and dust retained on the sieve were stained with crystal violet or blue methylene. After excess stain was rinsed off with water, the material remaining on the sieve was rinsed into an intergrid petri dish and the live and dead mites were counted with the aid of a stereoscope. Since mites are found both on the surface and at the bottom of the dish, both locations were analyzed. Dust components other than mites stain and provide a contrast background helping recognize mites. Thus, mites appeared white against a violet or blue-stained background. Each dust sample issued from Step 3 was analyzed. At the end of this step, each replicate was associated with two values: the number of attracted mites (i.e., mites collected from the sheet that covered the cushion) and the number of unattracted mites (i.e., mites collected from the cushion after removal of the sheet).

Step 5—Assessment of the Treatment Efficacy Data collected in Step 3 were used to calculate the efficacy of the tested composition.

[0327] The efficacy was calculated as follows:

Efficacy=[number of mites counted in the dust sample collected from the sheet that covered the cushion/(number of mites counted in the dust sample collected from the sheet that covered the cushion+number of mites counted in the dust sample collected from the cushion after removal of the sheet)]*100

In other words:

Efficacy=[number of attracted mites/total number of mites]*100, wherein [0328] the number of attracted mites is the number of mites found in the sheet that covered the cushion, and [0329] the total number of mites is the number of mites found in the sheet that covered the cushion and the number of remaining mites found in the cushion after removal of said sheet.

[0330] The average efficacy was calculated from 3 replicates (for the treatment and for the control).

Statistics

[0331] Statistical significance between the treatment and the control was assessed using a Fisher's exact test.

Results

[0332] The attracting properties of compositions comprising menthone, either alone (i.e., isolated) or within peppermint oil, were tested in the real-life conditions as described hereinabove.

[0333] The efficacy of a composition comprising menthone for attracting the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae, the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae in real-life conditions is presented in Table 7 below. The efficacy of a composition comprising peppermint oil for attracting the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae and the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus in real-life conditions is presented in Table 8. The efficacy of a composition comprising peppermint oil for attracting the storage mite Tyrophagus putrescentiae, the dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and the dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae in real-life conditions is presented in Table 9 and Table 10 below.

TABLE-US-00007 TABLE 7 Efficacy of composition comprising menthone sprayed on a cushion infested with Tyrophagus putrescentiae, Dermatophagoides farinae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus Dermato- Dermato- Total phagoides phagoides Tyrophagus number of pteronyssinus farinae putrescentiae mites Menthone 44% (±5%) 47% (±6%) 69% (±8%) 54% (±5%) 10.sup.−6 L/L Control 24% (±11%) 23% (±4%) 43% (±7%) 33% (±3%) (water) Menthone: N = 3; water: N = 3

[0334] The composition comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L (corresponding to a concentration of menthone of about 9×10.sup.−4 mg/mL) attracts 44% of the population of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, 47% of the population of Dermatophagoides farinae and 69% of the population of Tyrophagus putrescentiae out of the cushion in one treatment (i.e., after one application in 6 sprays followed by a 1 h incubation). Compared to the control, the comprising menthone at 10.sup.−6 L/L attracts 21% more mites out of the infested cushion (Fisher's exact test, p-value=0.0006).

TABLE-US-00008 TABLE 8 Efficacy of composition comprising peppermint oil sprayed on a cushion infested with Tyrophagus putrescentiae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus Dermatophagoides Tyrophagus Total number of pteronyssinus putrescentiae mites Peppermint oil 39% (±7%) 60% (±9%) 46% (±8%) 10.sup.−5 L/L Control (water) 20% (±6%) 48% (±13%) 29% (±10%) Peppermint oil: N = 6; water: N = 5

[0335] The composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L (corresponding to a concentration of peppermint oil of about 9×10.sup.−3 mg/mL) attracts 39% of the population of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and 60% of the population of Tyrophagus putrescentiae out of the cushion in one treatment (i.e., after one application in 6 sprays followed by a 1 h incubation). Compared to the control, the comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L attracts 17% more mites out of the infested cushion (Fisher's exact test, p-value=0.0344).

TABLE-US-00009 TABLE 9 Mean efficacy of composition comprising peppermint oil sprayed on a cushion infested with Tyrophagus putrescentiae, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae Dermatophagoides spp. Tyrophagus putrescentiae Standard Standard Mean efficacy deviation Mean efficacy deviation Treatment (%) (%) (%) (%) Product 64.07 5.97 73.86 10.17 Control (water) 32.46 2.17 41.88 4.21 Dry control 14.96 5.87 25.91 5.55

[0336] The composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L (referred to as “product” in Table 9) attracted 64% of the population of Dermatophagoides spp. and 74% of the population of Tyrophagus putrescentiae out of the cushion in one treatment (i.e., after one application in 6 sprays followed by a 1 h incubation) (Table 9). Compared to the water control, the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L attracted 32% more Dermatophagoides spp. and Tyrophagus putrescentiae out of the infested cushion (Fisher's exact test. p-value <0.01). Compared to the dry control, the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L attracted almost 50% more Dermatophagoides spp. and Tyrophagus putrescentiae out of the infested cushion (Fisher's exact test. P-value <0.001) (Table 9). Therefore, the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L is statistically more efficient than the controls (chi-squared test. p-value <0.001).

TABLE-US-00010 TABLE 10 Ratio between Dermatophagoides farinae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus attracted out of the cushion Ratio DP/DF Mean Ratio Standard attracted DP/DF deviation (%) attracted (%) (%) Treatment Replicates DF DP DF DP DF DP Product Test #1 43.20 56.80 42.07 57.93 1.32 1.32 Test #2 42.81 57.19 Test #3 40.21 59.79 DF: Dermatophagoides farinae; DP: Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus.

[0337] Among Dermatophagoides spp. attracted out of the cushion with the composition comprising peppermint oil at 10.sup.−5 L/L (referred to as “product” in Table 10), the ratio between the two species of house dust mites was 42% of Dermatophagoides farinae and 58% of Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Table 10).

REFERENCES

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