This letter comments on a recent article by Halawani et al. (10.1016/j.xphs.2021.07.017), which claimed a complex hydrogel formulation of thiamine nanospheres is a topical insect repellent. The authors did not thoroughly review the extensive prior literature on the subject that found no evidence of repellency for thiamine, and the experiment described lacked negative controls. Its results are not conclusive.
Keywords: Mosquito repellent; Nanospheres; Pullulan acetate; Skin protection; Thiamine hydrochloride.
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