Drug – bio-affecting and body treating compositions – Baits – attractants – or lures
Patent
1997-03-27
1998-06-23
Pak, John
Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
Baits, attractants, or lures
424405, 424409, 514547, 43107, 431321, A01N 3706, A01M 114, A01M 120, A01M 122
Patent
active
057701890
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This application is the national phase of international application PCT/EP95/02614 filed Jul. 5, 1995 published as WO96/01052 Jan. 18, 1996, which designated the U.S.
The present invention relates to the use of dibutyl malate as an attractant for certain insects and to insect attracting devices intended for trapping or killing flies comprising dibutyl malate as an attractant. Particularly, the invention concerns the use of dibutyl malate for attracting domestically occuring flies such as the housefly (Musca domestica) and the lesser housefly (Fannia canicularis). Furthermore the invention concerns a method for catching flies using dibutyl malate as an attractant.
Although most domestically occuring flies, like the common house fly, do not present a direct nuisance or health hazard to the human body, as do biting or stinging insects, they do present a hygiene problem in that they may infect food with pathogenic microorganisms and thus accelerate food spoilage. Therefore there is a need for combatting flies in environments where food is stored or prepared. Moreover, many people consider flies a nuisance in their homes. Compounds which are able to attract flies can play an import role in combatting them by luring them into traps where they are killed or immobilized.
Various compounds and compositions attracting house flies, often together with other insects, have been described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,764,367, 4,801,446, 4,801,448, 4,808,403, 4,859,463, 4,880,625, 4,911,906, 4,959,209, 4,988,507 and 4,988,508. One of the compounds mentioned is dibutyl succinate, but this appears to be an attractant for other insects than Musca domestica.
The insect attractant properties of a large number of compounds for ten different insect species have been compiled by M. Beroza and N. Green and described in Agriculture Handbook No. 239, published in 1963 by the Agricultural Research Service of The USA Department of Agriculture. Several esters of malic acid were reported to be slightly attractive to various fruit flies, Gypsy moth and Drosophila; no data for the house fly were reported.
On the other hand dibutyl malate and various other malate esters were reported as effective repellents against: in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 71 1949, 507-509.
Finally malic acid (but not any malate ester) is mentioned as a component of an insect attractant composition in Japanese Patent Appln No. 54.095732.
It has now been found that dibutyl malate is a powerful attractant for domestically occuring flies, more particularly the housefly (Musca domestica) and the lesser housefly (Fannia canicularis), and thus can be used in a method for catching flies by luring them into or onto an insect attracting device or insect trap. The compound can be used for this purpose, either as such or in combination with other insect attracting substances. Therefore, insect attracting devices or traps according to the invention are characterized by emanating dibutyl malate vapors, thus causing a concentration gradient of dibutyl malate in the atmosphere surrounding them which will lure the flies into or onto the trap. Conventionally such traps also comprise means for killing or immobilizing the flies e.g. a toxic substance with which the fly is brought into contact, a tacky surface from which the fly cannot escape once it has landed thereon, some electric killing device or any other killing or immobilizing means known in the art. Furthermore traps intended for domestically occuring flies are generally specifically designed for trapping flying insects, e.g. by providing a means for hanging them from a ceiling, and are generally used indoors.
Dibutyl malate is a liquid at room temperature. It is substantially insoluble in water but soluble in isopropanol, diethyl ether, hexane and other low polar or non-polar organic solvents.
Preferably the dibutyl malate is diluted, either after evaporation from the trap by adding a gaseous diluent such as air, or before evaporation from the trap by mixing with a liquid or solid diluent. In the latter case the concentration of dibutyl malate
REFERENCES:
Svirbely, W.J. et al., "Physical Properties of Some Organic Insect Repellents," The Journal of the American Chemical Society, vol. 71, 1949, pp. 507-509.
Airey Michael John
Janousek Angela
Klein Erich
Watkins Stephen David
Pak John
Quest International B.V.
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