Vanessa Rüster (Hannover / DE; Celle / DE), Henrik Werner (Göttingen / DE), Prof. Dr. Stephan Wieneke (Göttingen / DE), Dr. Georg Avramidis (Göttingen / DE), Dr. Lars ten Bosch (Göttingen / DE), Prof. Dr. Christina Strube (Hannover / DE), Dr. Thomas Bartels (Celle / DE)
Abstract text
The poultry red mite (PRM), Dermanyssus gallinae, is one of the most common ectoparasites in poultry farming worldwide and can lead to substantial animal health and economic damages. The main problem in control is the rapid development of resistance to a wide range of chemical acaricides. Therefore, research on sustainable and effective control measures is becoming increasingly important.
In the present study, the acaricidal effects of cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAPP) treatment on different development stages of the PRM were investigated under laboratory conditions. For this purpose, mites and mite eggs were exposed to a single plasma pulse generated under different plasma settings, using the ambient air gas mixture at atmospheric pressure.
The results showed that all developmental stages of the PRM could be killed by CAPP treatment. The mortality rates showed significant stage-specific differences and increased with progressing time after plasma exposure. The average mortality rate was 99.7% after 12 hours in all plasma-exposed mites.
The results show that CAPP has acaricidal effects on all developmental stages of the PRM, including eggs. Further studies are needed to show whether this method can also be used under practical conditions in occupied laying hen houses for efficient control of PRM infestations.
Acknowledgement: The project is supported by funds of the German Government´s Special Purpose Fund held at Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank.