When exposed to catnip or silver vines, cats engage in some quite predictable behaviors, such as licking and chewing leaves, rubbing the head and faces of plants, and rolling on the ground. Cats get a real hit from these plants, but surprising new research indicates a more practical purpose than the desire to get up.
Nepetalactol – the strongest active ingredient in catnip (Nepeta cataria) and the silver calf (Actinidia polygama) – provides cats with a chemical defense against mosquitoes, according to the new research published in Science Advances. The discovery could explain why cats, whether domesticated cats or jungle predators, exhibit similar behaviors after being exposed to these plants.
The new research, led by Masao Miyazaki of Iwate University in Japan, provides new information about nepetalactol and how it affects feline behavior and their opioid receptors. That nepetalactol Discouraging mosquitoes is an amazing revelation and could result in a whole new class of insect repellents, according to the researchers. Nepetalactol had previously been associated with mosquito repellent, but “our data is the first to show it,” Miyazaki said in an email.
Moreover, the new paper is “the first to show that nepetalactol is a potent bioactive compound for cats.” Indeed, it is no secret that the chemical has a kind of neurological effect on cats, but catnip, a plant of the mint and silver vine family, a kind of kiwi, contain a lot of other bioactive compounds such as isoiridomyrmecin, iridomyrmecin, isodihydronepetalactone and dihydronepetalactone. Miyazaki and colleagues, including researchers at Nagoya University in Japan and the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom, focused on nepetalactol because of its suspected potential.
After coming into contact with catnip and silver calves, cats engage in some stereotypical behaviors, such as rubbing the head and faces of plants, rolling on the ground and giving the impression of euphoria. This takes about five up to 15 minutes and is followed by the collapse phase, in which the cats stay for about an hour or more. The effect these plants have on cats has been known for centuries, but scientists don’t fully understand everyone’s purpose, such as a biological or evolutionary reason – assuming that not just a strange coincidence that has to do with the feline brain.
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To find out more, the team studied a bunch of different cats, including 25 lab cats, 30 wild cats and several large captive cats, including leopards, jaguars and lynx. They documented the cats SIDE to filter the non-petalactol-coated paper. AVol cats showed the classic behavioral response. Dogi and exposed mice to the chemical did not submit an answer.
Scientists have also studied reactions of cats to some of the other bioactive agents found in the silver vine and found nepetalactol to be the strongest.
“This study found that … nepetalactol is the main bioactive compound in silver calf leaves that induces friction and rolling characteristic in cats,” the authors write in their study. “Moreover, nepetalactol had a similar bioactivity to the Amur leopard, the jaguar and the Eurasian lynx. Like most [feline] species tested so far have shown positive responses to catnip (13 out of 21 species tested out of a total of 41 living species in this family), this characteristic response to nepetalactol is also likely to be common in many [felines]. ”
The group also measured cats’ endorphin levels, both before and after exposure, finding that the feline response to nepetalactol is regulated by their opioid system; Elevated endorphin levels were observed only after exposure to nepetalactol. Moreover, when scientists suppressed their opioid receptors with special drugs, cats no longer exhibited their characteristic behaviors when exposed to the chemical.
How about the role of the silver calf as a possible mosquito repellent, the researchers found that thatts with fur coated with nepetalactol attracted significantly fewer mosquitoes, especially A. albopictusthan the untreated control group –in some cases up to half.
“These results show that nepetalactol, transferred to the fur of the face and head by rubbing the silver vine leaves, acts as a repellent against A. albopictus in cats “, write the authors. “This is convincing evidence that the characteristic response to friction and rolling works to transfer plant chemicals that repel mosquitoes to cats.”
This, the authors argue, could explain why the behavior evolved. Cats rise on these plants, roll in the leaves and, unwittingly, become protected against mosquitoes in the process. This theory makes a lot of sense, but scientists now need to explain why this behavior is not seen in other animals and whether the repellent actually happens in nature, not just in a laboratory setting. We also need to find out if nepetalactol works to repel A. aegypti, the mosquito responsible for spreading yellow fever, dengue and Zika.
Miyazaki said there could be a very good reason why cats have developed this special relationship with catnip and silver calves. Many cats “rely on stealth to penetrate their prey,” he urged to stay calm and quiet, he said. A repellent that “reduces the susceptibility to both mosquito bite irritation and the diseases that these insect vectors carry is likely to offer a strong selective advantage.” This explains why this trait has been maintained by many species of cats, but “does not explain why behavior has evolved only in cats,” Miyazaki said.
One possible explanation is that an ancestor of modern cats developed special olfactory receptors, which it could have been a “crucial pre-adaptation” that offered the possibility for this behavior to evolve, Miyazaki speculated.
Looking to the future, the team wants to identify olfactory receptors related to nepetalactol as well genes responsible for behavior. Miyazaki said team members tested nepetalactol on their arms and seemed to keep the mosquitoes away. But this “is only for patent data,” he said.
Ah yes, the almighty dollar. But this is a in which case good science could lead to a good and welcome commercial product. Indeed, researchers may have come across a new type of mosquito repellent, but time will tell if it works better than conventional repellents. and whether it makes economic and practical sense to synthesize this compound in large batches.