Study summary
Novel arthropod repellent, BioUD (2-undecanone), is an efficacious alternative to DEET
Witting-Bissinger BE, Stumpf CF, Donohue KV, Apperson CS, Roe RM
Read the original paper- Study type
- Lab
- Year
- 2008
- Published in
- Journal of Medical Entomology 45(5):891-898
- Evidence strength
- Well-supported evidence
How it was tested
Laboratory and field comparison of BioUD (2-undecanone) against DEET-based products on human volunteers.
Summary
An NC State study introducing BioUD, whose active 2-undecanone comes from wild tomato, arguing that at 7.75% it matches or beats DEET against mosquitoes and ticks despite carrying far less active. It spans lab cage assays, tick choice tests, and human field trials.
Key findings
In the lab, 7.75% BioUD matched 7 to 15% DEET against Aedes mosquitoes over six hours, and in the field it equalled or beat 25 to 30% DEET. Against ticks it repelled for at least 2.5 hours on skin, and in a choice test ticks actually preferred DEET-treated surfaces over BioUD. The important caveat is that 2-undecanone was developed and patented at NC State, where the authors work, so this is essentially the institution validating its own product.
Limitations
No sample sizes in the abstract, mostly low-concentration DEET comparators in the controlled assays, qualitative repellency rather than protection times, and a clear institutional conflict of interest.