Recent research has found that shredded catnip or silver vine leads to the release of more particular chemicals. Which would potentially explain the strange behavior of the felines.
Felines intoxicated by the substances released by catnip and silver vine
L’catnip (Nepeta cataria) and the silver vine (Actinidia polygama) both produce chemicals from a group called iridoids which repel mosquitoes, flies, cockroaches and potentially other insects and mites. Like most owners of cats have no doubt noticed, their companions seem to be intoxicated by their scent.
Last year, Masao Miyazaki and his colleagues from theIwate University (Japan) had discovered that rubbing against these plants allowed felines to coat themselves with nepetalactol, natural insect repellent. For this new study published in the journal iSciencethe team sought to establish the reason for their strange reactions.
Since cats tend to lick catnip or silver vine leaves and spit them out after chewing them, scientists suspected that the medicinal effect did not occur when these were swallowed. Finding that they also gave off a much stronger odor when crushed, the team decided to measure iridoid concentrations in leaves shredded by cats or human hands.
“Damaged catnip leaves emitted 20 times more iridoids into the air “, Explain Miyazaki. ” These concentrations were respectively 10 and 40 times higher for silver vine leaves chewed by felines or shredded by hand.. »
An effective repellent
If, in terms of concentrations, damaged catnip released about 40 times more iridoids than shredded silver vine, Miyazaki explains that the latter contained a greater variety. Thus, emissions from both plants effectively repelled young female Asian tiger mosquitoes (Aedes albopictus) in laboratory.
Suggesting that high levels of iridoids ” intoxicate cats, this work indicates that the damaged plants could be an effective mosquito repellent for humans. ” I didn’t get any stings after rubbing silver vine leaves on my bras”, emphasizes Miyazaki.
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