Search Here

Some American cities are facing the problem of bedbug resistance despite using the insecticides to control them, says the latest study. In a first such research, a resistance to neonicotinoids has been recorded by the bed bugs, said the study authors. These are the most commonly used form of pest control against the bed bugs. Researchers examined the bugs collected from homes in Michigan and Cincinnati and then analyzed them against various neonics, such as, acetamiprid, dinotefuran, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. They were then compared against the bedbugs in the lab that are vulnerable to neonics, as reported by WebMD

Non resistant bedbugs only require 0.3 nanograms of acetamiprid to kill 50% of their population. However, it took as much as 10,000 nanograms to kill 50% of the non-resistant bedbugs found in Michigan and Cincinnati homes. When compared to the non-resistant bedbugs, the ones found in Michigan were 198 times more resistant to dinotefuran, 546 times more resistant to thiamethoxam, 462 times more resistant to imidacloprid and a whopping 33,333 times more resistant to acetamiprid. On the other hand, the Cincinnati bedbugs showed resistance more than 163 times to imidacloprid, 226 times more resistant to thiamethoxam, and 33,333 times more resistant to acetamiprid, revealed the study in the Journal of Medical Entomology. 

Due to this reason, pest control companies "need to be vigilant for hints of declining performance of products that contain neonicotinoids," said study author Alvaro Romero from New Mexico State University. "For example, bedbugs persisting on previously treated surfaces might be an indication of resistance. In these cases, laboratory confirmation of resistance is advised, and if resistance is detected, products with different modes of action need to be considered, along with the use of non-chemical methods," Romano said in a journal news release, as reported by Health Day