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

描述（由申请人提供）：个人蜱叮咬保护和蜱控制是对抗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居住区周围感染的，因此疾病预防的责任主要在地方一级，特别是个人户主。该项目希望通过以下方式弥合蜱虫控制研究和实施之间的差距：1）评估个体和综合蜱虫控制策略的有效性，2）开发一种新颖的、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蜱虫叮咬保护措施。为了有效，决策支持工具必须提供有关当地病原体感染蜱虫遭遇风险的指导，以及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候选产品（MRNP-最低风险天然和生物产品）的杀蜱效力和残留活性，这些候选产品具有较低的毒性/较高的安全性。适应技术从草坪害虫管理，我们将开发一种新的微型战略，方便和强大的评估效力和残留活性的个别蜱控制产品在现场条件下，并将测试最有前途的MRNP在宏观尺度的住宅社区现场试验。此外，我们将评估将啮齿动物和鹿为目标的蜱控制策略与合成拟除虫菊酯和MRNP的应用相结合的成本效益。将根据管理计划降低病原体暴露概率（Pg）的程度，评估单独和综合蜱虫控制方法的有效性。我们在这个项目中的主要重点将是通过开发一个新颖的智能手机应用程序- TickEncounter风险计算器与行动指导-用于园林设计师，商业害虫控制运营商和房主来实施蜱虫管理。此外，我们还将开发和评估其他基于社会营销和社交网络的方法，以增加选择控制其财产上蜱虫的人数。通过将昆虫学和流行病学蜱传疾病风险因素与新媒体健康促进系统相结合，该项目的预期成果是改善蜱叮咬保护决策支持，并显着增加在其财产上控制蜱虫的人数。

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.