{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,31]],"date-time":"2026-10-31T18:02:17Z","timestamp":1793469737383,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"Oxford University Press (OUP)","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,25]],"date-time":"2019-10-25T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1571961600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/journals\/pages\/open_access\/funder_policies\/chorus\/standard_publication_model"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Agency for Scientific and Technological Promotion","award":["PICT 2016-1431"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PICT 2016-1431"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title><jats:p>Human head lice Pediculus humanus capitis (De Geer) (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae) are insect parasites closely associated with humans, feeding on the blood of their hosts and causing them skin irritation and probable secondary infections. Despite being a severe nuisance, very few studies have reported on intraspecific chemical communication in head lice. Here, we evaluated the attractive response of head lice to the volatile compounds and solvent extracts from their feces. We also chemically analyzed the main volatile components of these feces and those of the feces\u2019 extracts. Head lice were attracted to the methanol extract of their feces but not to the hexane or dichloromethane extracts, suggesting the polar nature of bioactive chemicals present in head louse feces. Follow-up chemical identifications, in fact, showed the presence of hypoxanthine, uric acid, and another purine tentatively identified as either guanine or iso-guanine. Additionally, head lice were significantly attracted by volatiles emitted from samples containing feces. The volatiles emanated from feces alone contained 19 identified substances: 2-pentanone, hexanal, heptanal, 3-methyl-3-buten-1-ol, octanal, sulcatone, nonanal, acetic acid, 2-ethyl-1-hexanol, decanal, 1-octanol, butyric acid, 1-nonanol, hexanoic acid, octanoic acid, 2,6-dimethyl-7-octen-2-ol, 2-undecanone, geranylacetone, and hexadecane. The major compounds found were decanal, nonanal, hexanal, and acetic acid, together representing approximately 60% of the identified compounds. This work represents the first chemical evidence of intraspecies communication among head lice. The results support the existence of active substances present in the feces of P. humanus capitis that may be involved in its aggregation behavior.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1093\/jme\/tjz184","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,25]],"date-time":"2019-10-25T23:43:33Z","timestamp":1572047013000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Head Louse Feces: Chemical Analysis and Behavioral Activity"],"prefix":"10.1093","author":[{"given":"F G","family":"Galassi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"M I","family":"Picollo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centro de Investigaciones en Plagas e Insecticidas, Unidad de Investigaci\u00f3n y Desarrollo Estrat\u00e9gico para la Defensa (UNIDEF-CONICET-CITEDEF) Buenos Aires, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"P","family":"Gonzalez-Audino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centro de Investigaciones en Plagas e Insecticidas, Unidad de Investigaci\u00f3n y Desarrollo Estrat\u00e9gico para la Defensa (UNIDEF-CONICET-CITEDEF) Buenos Aires, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"286","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,10,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0001","unstructured":"Bates, D., M.Maechler, and B.Bolker. 2013. lme4: linear-mixed effects models using S4 classes. http:\/\/CRAN.R-project.org\/ package=lme4 (R package version 0.9999992)."},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"340","DOI":"10.1007\/s10886-011-9936-1","article-title":"The fecal odor of sick hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) mediates olfactory attraction of the tick Ixodes hexagonus","volume":"37","author":"Bunnell","year":"2011","journal-title":"J. Chem. Ecol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0039","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4283","DOI":"10.1242\/jeb.01241","article-title":"Rumen metabolites serve ticks to exploit large mammals","volume":"207","author":"Donz\u00e9","year":"2004","journal-title":"J. Exp. Biol."},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"307","DOI":"10.1007\/BF01202877","article-title":"Identification of xanthine and hypoxanthine as components of assembly pheromone in excreta of Argasid ticks","volume":"11","author":"Dusb\u00e1bek","year":"1991","journal-title":"Exp. Appl. Acarol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"17","DOI":"10.1006\/expr.2001.4653","article-title":"Development of symbionts in triatomine bugs and the effects of infections with trypanosomatids","volume":"100","author":"Eichler","year":"2002","journal-title":"Exp. Parasitol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"198","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1227412","article-title":"Microbiology. Animal behavior and the microbiome","volume":"338","author":"Ezenwa","year":"2012","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"527","DOI":"10.1093\/jme\/tjx243","article-title":"Response of Pediculus humanus capitis (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae) to volatiles of whole and individual components of the human scalp","volume":"55","author":"Galassi","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. Med. Entomol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"163","DOI":"10.1007\/s00436-009-1378-0","article-title":"Pediculus humanus capitis (head lice) and Pediculus humanus humanus (body lice): response to laboratory temperature and humidity and susceptibility to monoterpenoids","volume":"105","author":"Gallardo","year":"2009","journal-title":"Parasitol. 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Ecol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0017","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e2677","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pntd.0002677","article-title":"A multi-species bait for Chagas disease vectors","volume":"8","author":"Mota","year":"2014","journal-title":"PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0018","first-page":"629","article-title":"The aggregation response of human body louse (Pediculus humanus) (Insecta, Anoplura) to its excretory products","volume":"7","author":"Mumcuoglu","year":"1986","journal-title":"Insect Sci. Appl"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0019","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1036","DOI":"10.1093\/jme\/tjv121","article-title":"Effect of environmental conditions and toxic compounds on the locomotor activity of Pediculus humanus capitis (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae)","volume":"52","author":"Ortega-Insaurralde","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Med. 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Physiol"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0022","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10","DOI":"10.1186\/1471-2156-5-10","article-title":"The sex ratio distortion in the human head louse is conserved over time","volume":"5","author":"Perotti","year":"2004","journal-title":"BMC Genet"},{"key":"2019102515291651400_CIT0023","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"814","DOI":"10.1093\/jmedent\/35.5.814","article-title":"Laboratory studies of susceptibility and resistance to insecticides in Pediculus capitis (Anoplura; Pediculidae)","volume":"35","author":"Picollo","year":"1998","journal-title":"J. Med. 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