Insecticides can kill 3 generations of cockroaches

According to Purdue University entomologists in the process of testing the effectiveness of specialized gel primers, only one dose of insecticide can kill three generations of cockroaches because they feed on each other and transmit poison for each other.

Grzegorz, assistant professor of entomology, "Grzesiek" Buczkowski said that for the first time, scientists have demonstrated that the control of harmful insects is still useful when transmitted twice after the first dose. Transmission of insecticides from cockroach generation to generation is called horizontal transfer technique.

Buczkowski said: 'Our results are significant because cockroaches are difficult to control with their rapid growth. They especially appear in the city and cause many health problems. '

It is difficult to detect and remove them from shelters because they work at night and live in places where we cannot reach them. They invade places where they can easily find countless food and drinks. Besides, cockroaches are also attracted to the place where there is a kind of chemical due to a chemical compound called pheromone that secretes and affects the activity of the same species.

In a laboratory study, scientists tested German cockroaches - the most common indoor living species in the United States - with DuPont products with the active ingredient indoxacarb . Although the researchers only conducted indoxacarb, Buczkowski suggested that other insecticides could potentially kill up to three generations of cockroaches.

The study done by Grzegorz "Grzesiek" Buczkowski demonstrated just one dose of insecticide that could kill 3 generations of harmful insects. According to Buczkowski, an assistant professor of entomology, it is very difficult to control cockroaches because they reproduce very quickly, they work mainly at night and snuggle where we cannot reach. (Photo: Purdue Agricultural Communication photo / Tom Campbell)

During the first stage of transmission from the dead adult cockroach in the earliest stage, an average of 76% of the cockroaches did not succumb to excretions containing indoxacarb from dead animals (according to the report). The study was published in the June issue of the Journal of Economic Entomology.

In the third transition period or the third kill, an average of 81% of adult male cockroaches eating dead nymphs also died. The data were taken 72 hours after cockroaches contacted another animal that was infected with indoxacarb.

Also according to Buczkowski - Purdue Industrial Affiliates Program program director, cockroach death rate in the 4th generation after the first insecticide dose is not higher than that of those not exposed to insecticides even under any measure.

Adult German cockroaches are shiny golden brown, about half an inch long. The earliest developmental pupae used in the study were instar 1 larvae aged 1 to 5 days. Larvae undergo 5 stages of molting to mature.

In addition to enticing more cockroaches to the habitat by the action of pheromones in feces, cockroaches also cause many other problems.

Buczkowski said: 'Cockroaches molting when developing from pupae stage to the next stages. Where they live has a large amount of skin peeling up. The dead skin can fly in the air causing allergies or asthma. This is the biggest problem they cause. '

Buczkowski intends to explore other types of cockroach primers that have similar effects while also investigating the horizontal transfer effect of insecticides in the natural environment, not just in the laboratory.