Cyclic Acetals as Novel Long-Lasting Mosquito Repellents

The use of skin repellents against hematophagous mosquitoes is an important personal protection practice wherever these insects are abundant and where they are vectors of diseases. DEET and Icaridin are the major synthetic insect repellents in commercial formulations and are considered the most effective. Here, we tested against the mosquito Aedes albopictus several cyclic hydroxyacetals synthesized by acetalization of commercially available aliphatic carbonyl compounds (ranging from C3 to C15) with either glycerol, 1,1,1-trismethyloletane, or 1,1,1-trismethylolpropane and compared their efficacy with commercial repellents. We found that several hydroxyacetals were comparable with DEET and Icaridin both in terms of the required dose and repellence duration, while a few performed better. For those most active, toxicity was investigated, finding that a few of them were less cytotoxic than DEET and less prone to permeate through cell layers. Therefore, such results indicate that novel safe mosquito repellents could be developed among cyclic hydroxyacetals.

Automated summary

The use of skin repellents is important for personal protection against disease-carrying mosquitoes. In this study, cyclic hydroxyacetals were tested as potential repellents and found to be as effective as DEET and Icaridin, with some compounds performing even better. These compounds also showed lower toxicity compared to DEET, suggesting their potential as safe mosquito repellents.