Ectoparasites can be significant pests for the poultry industry. The chicken (or poultry) red mite and the northern fowl mite are the most economically important ectoparasites of poultry globally. These mites can have significant deleterious effects on its fowl host including anaemia, reduced egg production, and egg quality. The chicken mites may also act as a vector for pathogens. Molecular bi...

Varroa destructor is an ectoparasitic pest of honeybees, and a threat to the survival of the apiculture industry. Several studies have shown that unlike European honeybees, African honeybee populations appear to be minimally affected when attacked by this mite. However, little is known about the underlying drivers contributing to survival of African honeybee populations against the mite. We hyp...

Demodicosis in cattle is caused by a microscopic mite, Demodex bovis. The parasites live sometimes in large numbers in the hair follicles and associated skin glands. The disease is well described and quite common in tropical zones, but rare and most likely underestimated in temperate regions, especially in Europe (Fisher, 1973; Matthes, 1994). Demodectic mange in cattle is known to be usually a...

House dust mite allergy is present in up to 90% of Asian atopic patients, with increasing incidence and prevalence of sensitization and clinical allergy from childhood through to adulthood. This far exceeds the reported prevalence of 50%–70% in Western populations [1]. House dust mite allergy is particularly common in the tropical areas of Southeast Asia due to the warm, humid climate [2]. In c...

Honeybee disappearance is one of the major environmental and economic challenges this century has to face. The ecto-parasitic mite Varroa destructor represents one of the main causes of the worldwide beehive losses. Although halting mite transmission among beehives is of primary importance to save honeybee colonies from further decline, the natural route used by mites to abandon a collapsing co...

The varroa mite (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman) is an ecto-parasite of the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) and is distributed worldwide. Because A. mellifera colonies almost always die within two to three years after mite infestation, if not treated, feral bee colonies (unmanaged colonies in the wild) in U.S. were almost totally wiped out by this mite around 1995, less than a decade...

Remote sensing techniques can decrease pest monitoring costs in orchards. To evaluate the feasibility of detecting spider mite damage in orchards, we measured visible and near infrared reflectance of 1153 leaves and 392 canopies in 11 peach orchards in California. Pairs of significant wavelengths, identified by Partial Least Squares regression, were combined into normalized difference indices. ...

Methods bGST was expressed in Escherichia coli, purified and characterized by mass spectrometry. BALB/c mice were immunized with bGST or Bet v 1. Antibody and T cell responses were assessed. 217 sera from birch pollen-allergic patients were tested for IgE-reactivity to bGST by ELISA. The allergenicity of bGST was evaluated with IgE-loaded rat basophil leukaemia cells (RBL) expressing the a-chai...

Bud mite, blister mite ( Colomerus vitis Pagenstecher), and rust mite ( Calepitrimerus vitis Nalepa) (Acari: Eriophyoidae) are recognized grapevine pests. Much of the biology and ecology of these pests is poorly understood. We used two types of molecular markers to gain further insight into the breeding biology and population structure of these mites, using individuals collected from sites arou...