Study summary
Evaluating repellence properties of catnip essential oil against the mosquito species Aedes aegypti using a Y-tube olfactometer
Batume C, Mulongo IM, Ludlow R, Ssebaale J, Randerson P, Pickett JA, Mukisa IM, Scofield S
- Study type
- Lab
- Year
- 2024
- Published in
- Scientific Reports 14
- Evidence strength
- Well-supported evidence
Summary
Behavioural laboratory assay using a Y-tube olfactometer with a human hand as attractant to measure the repellence of catnip essential oil (Nepeta cataria Chemotype A, over 95% nepetalactone) against Aedes aegypti, benchmarked against 15% DEET and 12% N,N-diethylbenzamide (Odomos).
Key findings
Catnip oil concentrations as low as 2% repelled more than 70% of mosquitoes, with repellence broadly comparable to the commercial DEET products. A 2% dilution in olive oil stayed significantly repellent for up to 1 hour, while a 2% catnip lotion stayed significantly repellent for up to 4 hours.
Limitations
Y-tube olfactometer is a short-range behavioural choice assay rather than a skin complete-protection-time trial, so it measures spatial deterrence rather than bite protection on skin. Single mosquito species (Aedes aegypti) and laboratory conditions.