Allergenic Properties of Hair Portion of House Dust Mites

Abstract

Aims: to propose the house dust mite’s hair or setae contribution of causing allergy in vulnerable people, and starting with its biological positioning among other insect. Discussion: House dust mites (HDM) are allergenic arthropods for atopic individuals.  The most common species of HDM are Dermatophagoides farinae, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, and Euroglyphus maynei. with preference to humid, warm and temperate climates, that responsible for allergy episodes in atopic individual. Beside their feces, allergenic properties also found in house dust mite’s shed skin and decaying bodies. Along their shedding exoskeleton, its hair or setae perhaps also contributes to or even augment the allergogenic properties. Insect setae, which are hair-like structures on the insect's body, have a wide range of functions beyond simple sensory perception. These functions include defense, locomotion, camouflage, and pheromone dispersal. In the context of house dust mites, at least there are three condition that might facilitate the setae’s potency to cause allergy, including easily to detach, anatomical location and its homeostatic function. Further focused research need to be conducted in order to explore the mechanism of its setae in causing or at least contributing to its allergogenic properties in order to support the hypothetical we proposed.