House Dust Mites, Dermatophagoides Spp. (Arachnida: Acari: Pyroglyphididae)

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EENY-059

House Dust Mites, Dermatophagoides spp. (Arachnida:


Acari: Pyroglyphididae)1
H. A. Denmark and H. L. Cromroy2

Introduction
The term “house dust mites” has been applied to a large
number of mites found in association with dust in dwell-
ings. The American house dust mite, Dermatophagoides
farinae Hughes, and the European house dust mite,
Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Trouessart), are discussed
here. The first permanent structures for houses date back
to 6,000 to 5,000 BCE, but it was not until the late 1600s
that scientists became interested in the dust of houses. The
pyroglyphids are parasites associated with birds and/or
mammals. Kern (1921) found house dust to give positive
cutaneous reactions in sensitive patients. Cook (1922) and
Coa (1922) also found that dust extracts gave positive skin
reactions in over 30% of the individuals tested. Voorhorst
et al. (1964) found that mites contribute to the house dust Figure 1. Dermatophagoides spp. A) Dorsum of Dermatophagoides
allergy problem. farinae Hughes. B) Female genital opening. C) Bursa copulatrix and
seminal receptacle D) Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Trouessart)
female genital opening. E) Bursa copulatrix and seminal receptacle.
Distribution Credits: Division of Plant Industry.

House dust mites are nearly cosmopolitan in distribution as microns long and 245 microns wide. A pair of suckers on
they are associated with house dust and bird nests. the ventral posterior idiosoma of the male is used to grasp
the female during copulation. Males are more sclerotized
Description with enlarged legs I and III. The male aedeagus is located
Both male and female adult house dust mites are globular between the apodemes of leg IV. The female has a well-
in shape, creamy white and have a striated cuticle. The defined genital opening anterior to the bursa copulatrix
female measures approximately 420 microns in length located near the anus (Suggars 1987).
and 320 microns in width. The male is approximately 420

1. This document is EENY-059, one of a series of the Department of Entomology and Nematology, UF/IFAS Extension. Original publication date October
1998. Revised June 2014 and April 2017. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu. This document is also available on the Featured Creatures
website at http://entnemdept.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/.

2. H. A. Denmark, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Plant Industry; and H. L. Cromroy, Department of Entomology
and Nematology; UF/IFAS Extension, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services
only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status,
national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other UF/IFAS Extension publications, contact your county’s UF/IFAS Extension office.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, UF/IFAS Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A & M University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County
Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, dean for UF/IFAS Extension.
Life Stages and Biology mite are usually found in high numbers (Yoshikawa and
Bennett 1979). Davies (1958) reported the highest house
The life cycles of these two mite species include egg, active
dust allergen activity was found in dust samples stored at
larva, resting larva (pharate tritonymph), active tritonymph,
85% relative humidity. Mite analyses were not included
resting tritonymph (pharate adult), and active adult stages.
in Davies’ report. The age of the dust also appears to be
Between 19 and 30 days are needed to complete a life cycle
a factor in the degree of allergen activity. Mite allergens
depending upon the temperature and humidity (Furumizo
are mainly present in feces of house dust mites and may
1973). Mated females live about two months. A male may
become airborne and inhaled by patients, giving rise to
attach itself to a tritonymph female and mate when she
asthma, rhinitis, or atopic dermatitis (Van Bronswijk 1981).
reaches the adult stage. D. farinae lays eggs over a 30-day
For a complete review of house dust mites and the related
period, producing about an egg a day, while D. pteronys-
problems see Wharton (1976) and van Bronswijk (1981).
sinus lays about 80 eggs over a 45-day period. There is a
general agreement that house dust mites in the home feed
on shed skin of humans. The average individual sheds 0.5 to Survey and Detection
1.0 gram of skin daily. Spieksma et al. (1971) reported that A number of complicated procedures have been published
the mites were sensitive to relative humidity and at 60% or for separating mites from dust collected from vacuuming
lower the mite population stops growing and dies out. mattresses, carpets, sofas, and chairs. A simple method for
detecting the presence of mites is to put a small amount of
dust on the surface of water and examine it under 20X mag-
nification. Live and dead mites will remain on the surface of
the water. Furumizo (1973) reported a sieving and flotation
technique. Shamiyeh et al. (1973) placed a 0.05 g sample
of dust in 30 mL of a saturated NaCl solution and added 5
drops of detergent. The dust was teased apart and subjected
to ultrasonic treatment for 20 minutes. The suspension
was rinsed through a 45-micron mesh sieve, stained with
crystal violet and examined under a stereo microscope.
Hirschmann (1986) reported that dust mites were attracted
to white DIN-A4 sheets of typewriter paper placed where
the dust mites are suspected. Paper is examined in the
mornings and evenings by holding the paper over a lamp.
Figure 2. Scanning electron micrograph of a female house dust The mites cast a shadow.
mite, Dermatophagoides farinae Hughes, approximately 2000X
magnification.
Credits: G. W. Wharton Management
To manage mite populations, reduce the humidity below
70% and thoroughly vacuum mattresses, carpets, sofas,
Hosts and chairs. Very sensitive individuals should encase their
House dust mite hosts include mammals, particularly mattresses in plastic. Use drapes that can be washed and
humans. They can also be found in bird nests, and oc- change bed clothing frequently. Vacuuming does not always
casionally in bee hives. remove all the live mites, and Korsgaard (1982) stresses
reducing humidity over sanitation. No one method has
been found for reducing mites and relieving allergy suffer-
Economic Importance ing. Immunotherapy, i.e., injections of mite extracts into the
Because of the medical implications, house dust and mites patients to increase antibody level, has had variable success
associated with house dust have been tested for the source (Munro-Ashman et al. 1976).
of the house dust allergen. Mites and insects that inhabit
buildings as well as bacteria, fungi, and algae appear to have
allergenic properties. The influence of house dust mites on Selected References
the overall problem of dust allergies is not clearly known. Coa, A.F. 1922. Studies in specific hypersensitiveness. V.
In dust samples taken by the senior author and those The preparation of fluid extracts and solutions for use in
taken by others, the American and European house dust the diagnosis and treatment of allergies with notes on the
collection of pollens. J. Immunol. 7:163–168.

House Dust Mites, Dermatophagoides spp. (Arachnida: Acari: Pyroglyphididae) 2


Cook, R.A. 1922. Studies in specific hypersensitiveness. Shamiyeh, N.B., R.P. Hornsby, S.E. Bennett and N.L. Wood-
IV. New etiologic factors in bronchial asthma. J. Immunol. ill. 1973. Distribution of house dust mites in the environs of
7:147–162. a Tennessee River Valley. J. Econ. Entomol. 66:998.

Davies, R.R. 1958. Moulds in dust and air. Thesis, Univ. of Spieksma, F. Th. M., P. Zuidema and M.J. Leupen. 1971.
London. High altitude and house-dust mites. British Med. J. 1:82–84.

De Saint-Georges-Gridelet, D. 1981. Mise au point de’ une Suggars, A.L. 1987. House Dust Mites: A Review. J. Ento-
strategie de controle de l’acarien des poussieres (Derma- mol. Sci. Suppl. 1:3–15.
tophagoides pteronyssinus) par utilisation de’un fongicide.
Acta Oecologica. 2: 117–126. van Bronswijk, J.E.M.A. 1981. House dust biology. NIB
Publishers, The Netherlands. 314 pp.
Furumizo, R.T. 1973. The biology and ecology of the house
dust mite Dermatophagoides farinae Hughes, 1961 (Acarina: Van de Lustgraaf, B. 1977. Xerophilic fungi in mattress dust.
Pyroglyphidae) Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Mykosen. 20:101–106.
Riverside. 143 pp.
Van de Lustgraaf, B. 1978. Ecological relationships between
Hirschmann, W. 1986. Simple method for identifying live xerophilic fungi and house dust mites (Acarina: Pyro-
house dust mites. The Practical Pest Controller. 38:1–2. glyphidae). Oecologia (Berlin). 33:351–359.

Ker, R.A. 1921. Dust sensitization in bronchial asthma. Voorhorst, R., M.I.A. Spieksma-Boezeman and F. Th.
Med. Clin. N. America. 5:751–758. M. Spieksma. 1964. Is a mite (Dermatophagoides sp.) the
producer of the house-dust allergen? Allergie u. Astma.
Korsgaard, J. 1982. Preventative measures in house dust 10:329–334.
allergy. Am. Rev. Respir. Dis. 125:80–84.
Wharton, G.W. 1976. House dust mites. J. Med. Entomol.
Leysen, M. Th., G. Reybrouck, and H. Van de Voorde. 12:577–621.
1974. Susceptibility of the house dust mite to pesticides and
disinfectants. Acta Allergologica. 29:455-461. Yoshikawa, M. and P.H. Bennett. 1979. House dust mites in
Columbus, Ohio. Ohio J. Sci. 79:280–282
Mallea, M. and J. Charpin. 1977. Activities fongistatique et
fongicide du paragerm forte ambiance sur les champignons.
Allergologia et Immunopathologia. 5:536.

Mitchell, E.B., S. Wilkins, J. McCallum Deighton, and


T.A.E. Platts-Mills. 1985. Reduction of house dust mite al-
lergen levels in the home: Uses of the acaracide, pirimiphos
methyl. Clinical Allergy. 15:235–240.

Munro-Ashman, D., and A.W. Frankland. 1976. Treatment


of allergy to house dust with pyridine-extracted alum-
precipitated extracts of the house dust mite. Annals of
Allergy 36:95–98.

Oshima, S. 1964. Observations of floor mites collected


in Yokokama. I. On the mites found in several schools in
summer. Japanese Journal of Sanitary Zoolog. 15:233–244
(in Japanese with English summary).

Penaud. A., J. Mouirit, P. Autran, P. Timon-David, M.


Jacquet-Francillon, and J. Charpin. 1973. Reflexions sur
les moyens de lutte contre les acariens pyroglyphides des
poussieres domestiques. Marseille-Medical. 110:377–380.

House Dust Mites, Dermatophagoides spp. (Arachnida: Acari: Pyroglyphididae) 3

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