Inspired by a traditional Balkan bedbug remedy（补救，治疗）, researchers have documented how microscopic¹ hairs on kidney bean leaves effectively stab and trap the biting insects, according to findings published online today in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface². Scientists at UC Irvine and the University of Kentucky are now developing materials that mimic³ the geometry of the leaves. Bedbugs have made a dramatic comeback in the U.S. in recent years, infesting⁴ everything from homes and hotels to schools, movie theaters and hospitals. Although not known to transmit disease, their bites can cause burning, itching⁵, swelling⁶（肿胀） and psychological distress⁷. It helps to catch infestations⁸ early, but the nocturnal parasites⁹' ability to hide almost anywhere, breed rapidly and "hitchhike" from place to place makes detection difficult. They can survive as long as a year without a blood meal.

 

Current commercial prevention methods, including freezing, extreme heating, vacuuming and pesticides¹⁰, can be costly¹¹ and unreliable. Many sufferers resort to ineffective, potentially dangerous measures, such as spraying nonapproved insecticides themselves rather than hiring a professional.

 

Doctoral student Megan Szyndler, entomologist Catherine Loudon and chemist Robert Corn of UC Irvine and entomologists（昆虫学者） Kenneth Haynes and Michael Potter of the University of Kentucky collaborated¹² on the new study.

 

Their work was motivated by a centuries-old remedy for bedbugs used in Bulgaria, Serbia and other southeast European countries. Kidney bean leaves were strewn on the floor next to beds and seemed to ensnare the blood-seeking parasites on their nightly forays. The bug-encrusted greenery was burned the next morning to exterminate¹³（消灭 ，根除） the insects.

 

Through painstaking¹⁴ detective work, the scientists discovered that the creatures are trapped within seconds of stepping on a leaf, their legs impaled¹⁵ by microscopic hooked hairs known botanically as trichomes.

 

Using the bean leaves as templates, the researchers have microfabricated materials that closely resemble them geometrically. The synthetic¹⁶ surfaces snag the bedbugs temporarily but do not yet stop them as effectively as real leaves, Loudon said, suggesting that crucial mechanics of the trichomes still need to be determined¹⁷.

 

Theoretically, bean leaves could be used for pest control, but they dry out and don't last very long. They also can't easily be applied¹⁸ to locations other than a floor. Synthetic materials could provide a nontoxic alternative.

 

"Plants exhibit extraordinary abilities to entrap¹⁹ insects," said Loudon, lead author of the paper. "Modern scientific techniques let us fabricate materials at a microscopic level, with the potential to 'not let the bedbugs bite' without pesticides."

 

"Nature is a hard act to follow, but the benefits could be enormous," Potter said. "Imagine if every bedbug inadvertently brought into a dwelling²⁰ was captured before it had a chance to bite and multiply."

 

Funding for the study was provided by the National Science Foundation.

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