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 Title: Scientists Confirm Folk Remedy Repels Mosquitoes 

 Release Date: 2006-06-27 

 Full Story: 
 OXFORD, Miss. - Swatting mosquitoes and dodging other
biting bugs is nearly a year-round chore in the Southeast,
but such pests are swarming across the country with the
advent of summer weather. And with warnings about West Nile
virus and other insect-borne diseases out, keeping the
pests away has taken on new urgency.

 A traditional folk remedy, known among people in
 Mississippi's hill country for at least a century,
 may provide some relief without all the worries of
 DEET and other harsh chemicals. Scientists at the
 United States Department of Agriculture-Agriculture
 Research Service housed at the National Center for
 Natural Products Research at the University of
 Mississippi have isolated compounds in the American
 beautyberry plant, <i>Callicarpa americana</i>,
 that may keep chomping insects away.

 "My grandfather would cut branches with the leaves
 still on them and crush the leaves, then he and his
 brothers would stick the branches between the
 harness and the horse to keep deerflies, horseflies
 and mosquitoes away," said Charles T. Bryson, an
 ARS botanist in Stoneville. "I was a small child,
 maybe 7 or 8 years old, when he told me about the
 plant the first time. For almost 40 years, I've
 grabbed a handful of leaves, crushed them and
 rubbed them on my skin with the same results."

 Bryson told his supervisor about the folklore
 repellent, and in 2004 the USDA-ARS at the UM
 natural products research center began
 investigating the beautyberry plant as a potential
 natural insect repellent.

 Charles Cantrell, an ARS chemist in Oxford, and
 Jerry Klun, an ARS entomologist in Beltsville,
 Md., confirmed that the natural remedy wards off
 biting insects, such as ticks, ants and
 mosquitoes: "I've rubbed the leaves on my arms,
 and it works," Cantrell said.

 "Traditional folk lore remedies many times are
 found to lead nowhere following scientific
 research," he continued. "The beautyberry plant and
 its ability to repel mosquitoes is an exception. We
 actually identified natural occurring chemicals in
 the plant responsible for this activity."

 Three repellent chemicals were extracted during
 the 12-month study: callicarpenal, intermedeol and
 spathulenol. The research concluded that all three
 chemicals repulse mosquitoes known to transmit
 yellow fever and malaria. Mosquitoes carrying the
 West Nile virus were not tested as part of the
 study, but the USDA-ARS has since filed a patent
 application to use callicarpenal as an anthropod
 repellent.

 There are barriers, however, to producing the
 repellent for mass consumption. The product must be
 registered with the Environmental Protection
 Agency, which may cost millions of dollars, and a
 cost-effective manufacturing procedure must be
 determined.

 "It's difficult to bring a repellent onto the
 market," Cantrell said. "We still have many
 unanswered questions: both the toxicity levels and
 evaporation rates are unknown. We're still in the
 early stages.

 Cantrell also said, "It's quite unusual to find a
 plant producing this type of compound, but it's
 synthesizing it for some reason. Perhaps, it's
 naturally defending itself against insect attack."

 The National Center for Natural Products Research
 is the nation's only university research center
 devoted to improving human health and agricultural
 productivity through the discovery, development
 and commercialization of pharmaceuticals and
 agrochemicals derived from plants, marine
 organisms and other natural products. University
 of Mississippi researchers at the center are
 studying hundreds of natural products that show
 promise to help treat a broad range of human
 illnesses, including cancer, AIDS, malaria, fungal
 infections, tuberculosis and emerging tropical
 diseases.

 Other studies by both university and USDA
 scientists at the center may yield better products
 to control weeds, insects, fungal diseases in food
 crops and algae growth in commercial catfish
 ponds.

 For more information about research at NCNPR, go to

<a href="http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/pharmacy/ncnpr">
http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/pharmacy/ncnpr</a>.
 

Visit Ole Miss on the World Wide Web at www.olemiss.edu.