Drug – bio-affecting and body treating compositions – Baits – attractants – or lures
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-04
2004-10-05
Page, Thurman K. (Department: 1616)
Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
Baits, attractants, or lures
C514S557000, C514S675000, C514S706000, C514S724000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06800279
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Insects have plagued people throughout history. Fast intercontinental travel and trade have enabled the importation of nonindigenous insect pests (e.g., species of mosquitoes, such as
Aedes albopictus
, the Asian Tiger mosquito) into the United States. As a result, the U.S. must face the task of controlling numerous species of nuisance pests, such as arthropods and, more specifically, mosquitoes. Some of these insects spread disease and, thus, are of great medical and veterinary importance. Control of these pests is necessary to reduce or eliminate the spread of arthropod-borne diseases.
The primary focus of this invention is the control or reduction of the population of mosquitoes. At least three “generations” of control methods have been developed over the years. The first generation of control methods comprise chemicals dispensed by foggers or sprayers, both on the ground and through the air. These chemicals may be classified as either adulticides or larvicides and are intended to attack and kill the adult mosquito or its larva, respectively. These chemicals usually have an inherent toxicity, which is potentially injurious to the environment, to marine life and wildlife, and ultimately to humans. As a result, these chemical insecticides have become viewed with disfavor.
One such insecticide product was “DURSBAN™ 10CR” produced by Dow Chemical Company in the mid-1970's. There were at least two problems with this product. First, it was inherently toxic and potentially harmful to the environment. Second, because of rapid turnover of the mosquito population and the selection of resistant genes by Dursban, insects could develop a resistance to the chemicals. Mosquitoes ultimately develop an immunity to adulticides of the same chemical family. This situation is referred to as “cross resistance” and illustrates that under adverse conditions, insects may adapt. This ability to adapt, often within a few generations, provides complications for researchers engaged in the field of pest control.
As a departure from the chemical adulticides and larvicides, a second generation of mosquito control product was developed. This second generation is known as insect growth regulators. Their purpose is to prevent the immature insect from transforming into an adult. This class of mosquito control product allows the larva to enter into its pupa stage but prevent the pupa from developing into an adult. These products have very low toxicity, or practically no toxicity, and hence are not detrimental to aquatic life. Due to the general application of this control material to the environment through a form such as a charcoal briquet, the products are messy, inconvenient to handle, and are very expensive. These products also require adequate surveillance of standing water and delivery of briquets to these locations. The potential exists that some sites will go untreated.
Over the past fifteen years, a third generation of insecticides has been developed. These are bacteriological methods for spreading endotoxins among insect populations. One of the most successful endotoxin agents used against insects is
Bacillus thuringiensis
Berliner var.
kurstaki
, a bacterium which infects the larvae of Lepidoptera (moths) that are to be destroyed. More recently, a new variety has been uncovered for use against mosquito and black fly larvae. This is
Bacillus thuringiensis
Berliner var.
israelensis
and its accompanying proteinaceous parasporal particles which contain protoxin. When a larvicidal microorganism of the bacillus type is used and is sprayed on the water in the form of a liquid produced by diluting the wettable powder or liquid concentrate with water, a similar problem is encountered. The bacillus spores and protoxin particles are heavier than water and sink. Additionally, the application of the bacillus does not have a sustained release—it is essentially “one shot”—and hence re-applications are often necessary to insure an effective mosquito control program. This is time consuming and expensive, and extensive surveillance is needed to target all breeding areas.
Besides these existing chemical and microbial insecticides, other devices and methods are known for the control or destruction of mosquitos and other aquatic pests.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,166,112 and 4,187,200, issued to Goldberg in 1979 and 1980, respectively, disclosed
Bacillus thuringiensis
in which a carrier was formulated as a buoyant colloidal suspension which stabilized just under the surface of the water.
According to information published by Biochem Products, a division of Salsbury Laboratories, Inc., a member of the Solvay Group, the earliest documented record of
Bacillus thuringiensis
was in Japan in 1901. In the decades since, at least 14 varieties of
B.t
. have been identified from several countries on the bases of biochemical characteristics and serotyping of vegetative cell flagellar antigens.
Bacillus thuringiensis
, Berliner also known as HD-1, Serotype H-3a3b, or
B.t
. variety
kurstaki
, has been registered in the United States since 1961 for control of Lepidopteran larvae or caterpillars and is the type commonly used in forestry, agriculture, home and commercial gardening and horticulture. Products containing
B.t
. reportedly have an excellent safety record with no documented incidents of serious or undesirable side effects on man and the environment. Biochem Products supplies a wettable powder or a flowable concentrate under the trademark “BACTIMOS™” which is derived from
B.t.i
., Serotype H-14,
Bacillus thuringiensis
variety
israelensis
, and was discovered in Israel in 1976. This is a larvicidal microorganism comprising
Bacillus thuringiensis
Berliner var.
israelensis
and its accompanying proteinaceous parasporal particles which contain protoxin (commonly referred to as “
B.t.i
.”).
For mosquito control purposes, the BACTIMOS™ (
B.t.i
.) is invariably mixed with water and is applied to large areas, using airplanes or helicopters. This method of application has been continually used despite the constant and critical need for an alternate delivery system for the myriad of ponds and other small bodies of water, as recognized in MOSQUITO NEWS in 1948.
Moreover, any attempt to impregnate
B.t.i
. (or the larvicidal microorganism of the aforesaid Goldberg patents) into the floating thermoplastic carrier of the aforesaid Cardarelli patent, would be impractical (if not impossible) and would destroy the stated utility of these references. An exposure of the
B.t.i
. particles to temperatures above 70° or 80° Celsius—depending upon the exposure time, which is inversely correlated with temperature—will cause the
B.t.i
. to suffer a protein denaturization, resulting in a change in its molecular structure and a loss of its activity. Thus, it would be impractical to attempt to incorporate
B.t.i
. into a thermoplastic or elastomeric strip of material, in view of the molding temperatures likely to be encountered. Moreover, even if the
B.t.i
. could be incorporated into a polymer or elastomeric matrix without substantially limiting or destroying its efficacy, these
B.t.i
. particles are agglomerations of relatively large molecules and are incapable of migrating within a polymer or elastomeric matrix. Hence, they would not even be released, since the active protein toxin has a molecular weight of approximately 28 megadaltons. The aforementioned methods are efficient, but are performed at high monetary costs to mosquito districts and taxpayers. Ultimately, the mosquitoes sought to be controlled are those noticed readily by humans, i.e. mosquitoes and blood-sucking flies that draw blood meals from humans.
Thus, numerous severe problems exist with the mosquito extermination methods that use chemical insecticides. As such, an alternative approach toward arthropod surveillance and control has been developed. One such promising method is the use of chemicals as attractants for mosquitoes and other arthropods that prey on human and animal hosts. The combination of highly effective chemical attract
Barnard Donald R.
Bernier Ulrich R.
Booth Matthew M.
Kline Daniel L.
Posey Kenneth H.
Choi Frank
Fado John D.
Page Thurman K.
Poulos Gail E.
The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of
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