Present state of research on house dust mites (Pyroglyphidae) in the Czech Republic

Systematic research on house dust mites in the Czech Republic started in the early seventies, when mite fauna of human dwellings and distribution of pyroglyphid mites were studied. Special attention was paid to old-age-pensioners' homes and children's sanatoria. Pyroglyphidae were found also in the city air and in the dust of city pavements, especially in localities with high occurrence of domestic pigeons. While D. pteronyssinus and D. farinae mostly occurred in permanently inhabited flats, Euroglyphus maynei prevailed in recreation houses and some hospitals. Autumn increase of population density occurred in both, D. pteronyssinus and D. farinae populations, however, the number of protonymphs was remarkable higher than that of other developmental stage in D. farinae population. Special rearing technique was developed for the mass-culture of mites and a Czechoslovak patent was assigned to the technology of allergen preparation for the diagnostics and the desensibilization of patients with house-dust allergies.