Ability of Individual and Integrated Tick Management (ITM) Technologies to Reduce

描述(由申请者提供)：个人被扁虱叮咬和控制扁虱是抗击莱姆病的重要公共卫生措施。在美国，大多数莱姆病病例是在牙周病病区获得的，主要是在地方层面上承担预防疾病的责任，特别是在个人户主身上。该项目希望通过1)评估单独的和综合的扁虱控制策略的有效性，以及2)开发一个新的、用户友好的决策支持和健康促进系统，将研究知识转化为具有成本效益的扁虱叮咬保护措施，从而弥合扁虱控制研究和实施之间的差距。为了有效，决策支持工具必须提供关于当地遭遇病原体感染扁虱的风险的指导，以及关于针对生态条件和个人风险水平定制的适当干预措施的信息。因此，我们提出了一项计划，评估和比较目前使用的合成拟除虫菊酯与一些被认为毒性较低/安全性较高的候选产品(mRNPs-风险最低的天然和生物制品)的杀虱效果和残留活性。我们将采用草坪病虫害管理的技术，开发一种新的微观尺度策略，方便而有力地评估田间条件下单剂防治扁虱的药效和残留活性，并将在大规模住宅社区田间试验中测试最有前景的mRNPs。此外，我们将评估将以啮齿动物和鹿为靶标的防治策略与合成拟除虫菊酯和mRNPs应用相结合的成本效益。将根据管理计划降低接触病原体(PG)的可能性的程度来评估单独和综合防治方法的有效性。我们在这个项目中的主要关注点将是通过开发一种新的智能手机应用程序-TickEncount Risk Calculator with Action Guidance-来实施壁虱管理，供园艺师、商业虫害防治运营商和房主使用。此外，我们将开发和评估其他基于社交营销和社交网络的方法，以增加选择控制其财产上的扁虱的人数。通过将昆虫学和流行病学扁虱传播的疾病风险因素与新媒体健康促进系统相结合，该项目的预期结果是改善扁虱叮咬保护决策支持，并显著增加控制其财产上扁虱的人数。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Personal tick-bite protection and tick control are important public health measures for combating Lyme disease. In the United States, the majority of Lyme disease cases are acquired in the peridomestic landscape placing the responsibility for-.disease prevention mostly at the local level, especially on individual householders. This project hopes to bridge the gap between tick control research and implementation by 1) assessing the effectiveness of individual and integrated tick control strategies, and by 2) developing a novel, user-friendly decision support and health promotion system for translating research knowledge into cost-effective tick-bite protection measures. To be effective, decision support tools must provide guidance regarding local risk of pathogen-infected tick encounter as well as information on appropriate interventions that are customized for the ecological conditions and individual level of risk. Accordingly, we propose a plan that assesses and compares the tick-killing efficacy and residual activity of currently used synthetic pyrethroids with a number of candidate products having perceived lower toxicity/greater safety (MRNPs-minimal risk natural and biological products). Adapting techniques from turf pest management, we will develop a novel micro-scale strategy for conveniently and robustly evaluating the efficacy and residual activity of individual tick control products under field conditions, and will test the most promising MRNPs in macro-scale residential community field trials. Additionally, we will evaluate the cost-effectiveness of integrating rodent and deer-targeted tick control strategies with applications of synthetic pyrethroids and MRNPs. The effectiveness of individual and integrated tick control approaches will be assessed based on the extent to which the probability of exposure to the pathogen (Pg) was lowered by the management program. Our principal focus in this project will be on implementing tick management by developing a novel Smartphone application - TickEncounter Risk Calculator with Action Guidance -- for use by landscapers, commercial pest control operators, and homeowners. Additionally, we will develop and evaluate other social marketing and social network-based approaches for increasing the number of people opting to control ticks on their property. By integrating entomological and epidemiological tick-borne disease risk factors with new-media health promotion systems, expected outcomes from this project are improved tick-bite protection decision support and a significant increase in the number of people controlling ticks on their property.