• April 23, 2024

Mites are associated with all living beings. They are very small, they measure a few microns (one micron is one thousandth of a millimeter). Some species rise to the plants or the body of animals and people, others are dispersed by wind.

Not all are harmful, on the contrary, most perform charitable functions where they are.

"99% of adults have mites of the species Demodex folliculorum in the face, where the pores They are more open, especially around the nose. They reproduce and live in Hair follicles feeding on the skin fat .

They do not really hurt, however, when the person has deficiencies in the immune system, they can invade the follicles of the eyelashes and cause infections, "he explained. Juan Morales Malacara, coordinator of the Acarology Laboratory of the Faculty of Sciences of the UNAM .

This microorganism stimulates the activity of sebaceous glands, with what helps to delay the appearance of wrinkles . It is not related to outbreaks of acne , in fact it does not abound in the skin sick, or in the dry skin, which, incidentally, is more susceptible to wrinkles . It also does not stay in the skin of children because he has the Hair follicles closed.

During adolescence, pores of the face begin to open, the secretion of grease increases, then the mites find there the ideal place to live.

Meanwhile, domestic dust mites contribute to the cleaning of houses by feeding on organic matter, especially dead skin cells and food remains that are deposited on the ground. They are found on pillows, mattresses, rugs, stuffed animals and armchairs.

They are not dangerous; However, your stool can trigger allergies with the possibility of complicating asthma symptoms in susceptible people. Constant hygiene is the best way to eliminate them. The spiders that devour them also help reduce populations in the home.

They are looking for!

Researchers of the Laboratory of Acarology "Anita Hoffmann", of the Faculty of Sciences (FC) of the UNAM , they cross the agricultural fields, they approach the plants, they place traps to capture the mites that lodge between the stems and leaves; there are species that wither and others benefit from being predators of parasites.

Another research group looks for it in rivers, lakes and other sources of fresh water, where its absence or presence is an indicator of pollution . The doctor Juan Morales Malacara prefers to go to the caverns where parasitic mites of bats live, under special conditions of humidity and temperature.

The collection of specimens is followed by observations with a microscope to determine the form of the specimens, their habits, the species to which they belong or if it is a new organism; finally, they are integrated into the collection that protects the FC Acarology Laboratory , the second in Mexico that founded the Dr. Anita Hoffmann , pioneer in the study of that fauna, in 1977.
 

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