How to Beat Away Bug Bites

如何改變“招蚊子”體質

People hate mosquitoes due to their blood-sucking tendencies. Scientists， too， are troubled by mosquitoes and have been researching ways to keep them away.

A team of researchers from Virginia Tech in the US looked into different kinds of soap. They invited volunteers to test how four different soap flavors attract mosquitoes.

After analyzing the mosquitoes’ behavior， the researchers discovered several chemicals in the soap that can influence the mosquitoes’ “choice of food”. Two chemicals， one with the smell of coconut and the other with the scent of flowers， can keep the insects away.

The team also found that what matters to mosquitoes is not just the chemicals， but rather the combination of chemicals with each person’s smell. For example， people who attract mosquitoes can be more attractive to them after using one type of soap. They can also keep mosquitoes away by using another kind of soap. The findings were “remarkable”， said senior author Clement Vinauger in a news release， adding that he would choose a coconut-scented soap to keep mosquitoes away.

人人都討厭“吸血”的蚊子。長期以來，科學家們也受蚊子的困擾并一直在研究如何防蚊。

美國弗吉尼亞理工大學的一個研究小組研究了不同種類的肥皂。他們邀請志愿者測試四種不同香型的肥皂對蚊子的吸引力。

在對蚊子的行為進行分析后，研究人員發現了肥皂中幾種可以影響蚊子“食物選擇”的化學物質。其中，含椰子味和花香的兩種化學物質能讓蚊子“敬而遠之”。

研究小組還發現，不僅是化學物質本身，化學物質與個人氣味的結合也會對蚊子產生影響。例如，招蚊子的人在使用某種肥皂后會更加吸引蚊子，但這些人也可以通過使用另一種肥皂來驅蚊。資深作者Clement Vinauger在新聞中表示，這些發現“非常有用”。他補充道，自己會選擇椰子香味的肥皂來驅蚊。

How these insects manage to find humans has also made scientists curious. According to a new study published in Current Biology， researchers built a “canteen” for hundreds of mosquitoes. In the 20-by-20-meter facility， there were six pads that had the smell of different humans. The pads were heated to mimic sleeping humans.

They found that the insects can track scents up to 60 meters. Also， mosquitoes are most attracted to a kind of chemical called carboxylic acid， which is usually produced by bacteria on human skin. The smell of one participant wasn’t attractive to the insects， and researchers believed it was due to the person’s diet， which is mainly plant-based foods.

By analyzing the chemicals that either attract or repel mosquitoes， scientists are able to improve mosquito repellent. With more studies， scientists believe changing a person’s diet could one day make them “mosquito-proof”.

蚊子是如何追蹤人類氣味的？科學家對這個問題也很好奇。在《當代生物學》上發表的一項新研究中，研究人員為數百只蚊子建造了一個“食堂”。在這個20×20米的設備里，有六張散發著不同人類氣味的墊子。這些墊子被加熱，以模仿睡覺中的人。

他們發現，蚊子可以追蹤60米以內的氣味。此外，蚊子最容易被一種名為羧酸的化學物質吸引，這種化學物質通常由人類皮膚上的細菌產生。研究人員發現有一名參與者的氣味對蚊子沒有吸引力，他們認為，這主要是由于此人飲食以素食為主。

分析吸引蚊子或驅蚊的化學物質，能幫助科學家們改進驅蚊劑。隨著更深入的研究，科學家們認為，改變個人飲食結構可以使人類最終變得“防蚊”。

Word Bank

mimic /'m?m?k/ v. 模仿（人的言行舉止）

The naughty boy enjoys mimicking his teacher’s behavior.

repel /r?'pel/ v. 推開；趕走；驅除

This kind of cream is used to repel insects.