We like to think that students, teachers or even professionals will be using our site to research projects and understand the mite from another prospective. The following links we believe to be significant for research and general academic pursuits.
Hard indoor flooring will not secure floating dust. Looped carpet pile will hold dust securely. Non-looped carpets will catch dust particles then release them easily when vacuumed. The choice is yours.
Doctors recognize the Allergic March as a series of common allergic conditions that can appear either singularly or together and often track with age. The image below describes the appearance of the conditions in very young children. Below this is a chart that shows where dust mite allergies can appear.
The image below shows a house dust mite eating a mite dropping. In the dropping are leftover scraps of food that have been broken down by active enzymes to produce new nourishment. Because of its exquisite sense of smell the house dust mite can tell when the dropping is ready for eating.
The reason why so many people are allergic to house dust mites is coming to light. One of the major mite allergens (Der p2) is a ‘con-artist’ that can mimic a human immune signal for a bacterial infection – even when infection isn’t there! The deception causes the immune system to attack a fake intruder, leading to a reaction against the mite itself.
Child psychiatrist, Professor Gregory Stores wrote: “Persistent sleeplessness [hyperactivity] in children, including those with a learning disability, should not be seen as inevitable but as treatable and often preventable" and “Allergies must also be added to the list of medical conditions that induce or aggravate childrens sleep problems”. Wise words from an opinion leader in the field of child psychiatry, yet ten years earlier, eminent allergist Dr Harry Morrow Brown demonstrated the effectiveness of dietary manipulation by simply eliminating allergenic foods from childrens diets.
Thirty-three years ago scientists investigated the contents of house dust mite droppings. They found two species of fungus along with an active digestive enzyme acting as a major mite allergen. By 2011 fourteen separate mite allergens had been identified along with DNA from bacteria and mites, chitin and quanine. This is a review of some of the investigations.
This review is a thorough, if not disturbing, examination of the sentinel role of the airway epithelium in asthma. It also questions the current, generalized classification and treatment of chronic and severe asthma.
Doctors and child psychiatrists looked at the harm from poor sleeping patterns in children and identified active allergies as a risk. They then coined the phrase, ‘a need for good sleep hygiene’. Sleep hygiene includes, “avoiding influences likely to make it difficult to get to sleep and sleep soundly”. Poor breathing, coughing or itching from dust mite exposure is a known risk to sound sleep - avoidance has been shown to be beneficial.
Scientists exposed human skin equivalent (HSE) to various molecules and allergens from three different species of common dust mites in order to identify alarm signaling within the epidermis and dermis and to discover pathways towards sensitization or inflammation. They began by acknowledging that enzymes from dust mites can damage skin.
Housedustmite.com has devised a lesson plan for teachers to encourage students to study house dust mites as a Life Science project. The rationale: doctors, from the World Allergy Organization recommend that all training family physicians study allergy extensively in medical school. By the same principle, students should understand the biology and ecology of a major cause of allergy worldwide.
Soft toys are a major source of house dust mites and their allergens, and sleeping with soft toys is a significant risk factor for house dust mite sensitization. Recent clinical research has identified three practical DIY methods to control house dust mite infestation in children's soft toys.
The six different types of asthma are: allergic (most common); occupational (work associated); steroid resistant (severe asthma); drug related; exercise induced and asthma related to obesity. Although they are separate they can work together to make asthma worse. Exposure to dust mites can impact on all of these.
To make it easier to understand the origins of allergy and allergic reactions, doctors have devised a simple two-tiered framework. They have divided immune reactions into adaptive and innate responses. In doing this they have also made it easier for allergy patients to understand the problem.
Doctors say sleeping away from house dust mite allergens can result in an improvement in mite related asthma and eczema. But what product is best?
Dangerous non-IgE inflammatory reaction from dust mites is named as a ‘New Aspirin Triad’. Scientists are piecing together the reasons why ingestion of mite contaminated wheat flour can result in severe anaphylaxis in a subset of mite allergic patients who are also hypersensitive to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin.
As far back as 1993 there have been clinical reports of cases of oral anaphylaxis from mite infested wheat flour even after baking. In 2009 The World Allergy Organization (WAO) recognized this phenomenon by publishing a paper on the subject, calling it Pancake Syndrome. One of the species of mite found infesting poorly stored packets of wheat flour is the common house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae. Although these mites are referred to as house dust mites they can thrive in poorly stored wheat flour as well as beds, etc.
The chemical that makes house dust mites gather together in defense has been identified as neryl formate, a common scent used in foods and perfumes.
The challenge in dealing with an allergy is to achieve a ‘tolerance’ to the offending trigger. This can be done in many ways. First, the trigger needs to be formally identified by testing. This can be through skin or blood testing by allergists who will also take a detailed family history and life style evaluation. Then the steps needed to ‘teach’ the immune system to tolerate exposure can begin. Doctors have identified several ways, some of which are listed below.
A year ago Danish statistical researchers announced that all attempts to eliminate mites from the home are useless. This is misleading. The lead researcher asserted, "we can conclude with confidence that there is no need to buy expensive vacuum cleaners or mattress covers or use chemical methods against mites because these treatments do not work".
“Tests completed on people with atopic dermatitis (eczema) demonstrate that the reduction of mite allergens improved the condition, greatly reducing the activity of atopic dermatitis in some people. There is a need to identify the people who will gain from this intervention.“ P.S. Friedmann, The Lancet, 347, Jan.6 1996
The house dust mite is an arthropod in the world of Arthropoda. Here is a shortened version of how to find its place in this vast animal Kingdom.
Domestic mites - are all mites found in the indoor environment that are capable of causing human sensitization. Sensitization means that the immune system is alert to the mite’s presence and its allergens. Once sensitized, repeated exposure to the mite can lead to allergy and allergic disease in some people, usually those with allergies in their families. Mites, associated with allergy are classified in two distinctive groups. They are recognized by where they live, and what they eat.
Mite allergens contain enzymes capable of degrading a wide range of substances, including other proteins and allergens, and could have a negative effect on the efficacy and stability of therapeutic vaccines.
House dust mite droppings consist of 3 to 5 food balls bound together by mucus. The ball is then wrapped tightly in a semipermeable membrane and egested. Egestion is the proper term for excretion of undigested food contained in feces.
As long ago as 1989 scientists noted that ‘rickettsia-like’ bacteria were infesting the gut of the mite, but how they gained access has never fully been explained. In 2008 an explanation has emerged.
Ozone is an unstable, colourless, odourless gas that occurs naturally in the atmosphere from solar radiation and electrical storms or from electrical equipment such as photocopiers in the indoor environment.
Mites are most active and breed successfully at a temperature of 72° F or 20° C. In this warm indoor environment, a breeding mite must maintain its water weight at 75% in order to function. By reducing the moisture in the indoor air, the active mite will not be able to sustain this weight. Consequently, it will not be able to breed or thrive and the mite colony becomes threatened with extinction.
The health of selected patients, who were originally enrolled in a cross sectional study on allergen sensitization in 1984, were revisited and reviewed in 1998.
A skin prick test is a safe method of introducing a small amount of allergen into the body in order to measure the strength of any allergic reaction. Timing for reactions can start 5 minutes after the test and peak about 30 minutes later.
When people, commonly with a family history of allergy, are repeatedly exposed to house dust mite droppings, they can develop a specific sensitivity to the mite. This sensitivity can lead to allergy. Once allergy is diagnosed, continued exposure to mite allergens can then become a trigger for symptoms of various allergic diseases that can harm lungs, eyes, nose, skin or even hearing.
Below are some astonishing mite/animal relationships that have evolved over millions of year of live on earth. Have a look through before going on to an important mite for human health Dermatophagoides spp.
For students of all ages, Below are the five steps that can be taken in the study of the house dust mite, the depth of study can reflect the age or requirement of each student.
Allergy is fast becoming an epidemic in the developed world and house dust mites are recognised as a major cause of allergy.
The house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus is about half the size of a full-stop or period on a newspaper. It has no sight, no respiratory system and is unable to drink, but lives by absorbing moisture and oxygen from the atmosphere. Mite droppings, which contain digestive enzymes, are a major cause of allergy worldwide.
The following quotes are from published papers. Copies of the papers can be obtained from medical libraries or from referenced sources.
Research papers, written by doctors, scientists and entomologists over the years, will assist in classroom projects.
There are millions of mite species on earth but the ones that may live in your home are referred to as domestic mites! Don't sleep with mites
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General information about the dust mite
A good starting point if you want to understand the basics to the dust mite
The associated diseases
There are several diseases associated to the dust mite, find out more here
Avoidance and the indoor environment
Want some tips on how to avoid the dust mite in your own home? This page is for you
For the curious
Are you curious about the house dust mite and fancy reading a bit more?
For dust mite studies
Deeper studies into the dust mites, this section is ideal for academics.
Hardcore research
As deep as we can go, these pages are useful if you want some hard facts.