Applied topically to larvae of Rhodnius prolixus Stal, Triatoma infestans
(Klug) and Panstrongylus herreri Wygodzinsky, vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi,
the causative agent of Chagas'disease, a synthetic, furan-containing
anti-juvenile hormonal compound, 2-(2-ethoxyethoxy)ethyl furfuryl ether
induced a variety of biomorphological alterations, including precocious
metamorphosis into small adultoids with adult abdominal cuticle, ocelli, as
well as rudimentary adultoid wings. Some adultoids died during ecdysis and
were confined within the old cuticle. The extension of these
biomorphological responses is discussed in terms of the complexity of the
action of anti-juvenile hormonal compounds during the development of
triatomines.
