Study summary
Efficacy of the new repellent BioUD against three species of Ixodid ticks
Bissinger BW, Apperson CS, Sonenshine DE, Watson DW, Roe RM
Read the original paper- Study type
- Lab
- Year
- 2009
- Species tested
- Amblyomma americanum, Dermacentor variabilis, Ixodes scapularis
- Published in
- Experimental and Applied Acarology 48(3):239-250
- Evidence strength
- Well-supported evidence
How it was tested
In laboratory choice-test bioassays, ticks chose between a treated surface and an untreated one and the share repelled was recorded; head-to-head tests also placed BioUD directly against DEET at several dilutions.
Summary
An early efficacy study of BioUD, a repellent whose active ingredient is 2-undecanone (a compound originally from wild tomato plants), tested against DEET for keeping ticks away. It pitted BioUD at its commercial 7.75% strength against DEET at 98% across three hard-tick species, including the blacklegged tick that spreads Lyme.
Key findings
BioUD held up remarkably well against far more concentrated DEET. At 7.75% it was as repellent as or more repellent than 98% DEET against all three species: equal for the American dog tick and better for the lone star and blacklegged ticks. By regression it took roughly 30 to 40% DEET to equal BioUD, and the authors summarize it as two to four times more active than DEET by weight. This is a big part of why 2-undecanone is one of the few plant-derived actives with genuinely strong tick data.
Limitations
These were laboratory choice tests on filter paper, which measure avoidance behavior rather than how long protection lasts on skin outdoors, and only three tick species were tested. The work comes from the research group associated with the compound's development, so independent field confirmation carries weight.