The repellency of 104 plant essential oils to female Aedes aegypti was examined using a cage-distribution assay. Results were compared with those of the conventional mosquito repellent N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide (DEET). Coriander, oreganum, pennyroyal, lemoneucalyptus, and spearmint exhibited high repellency effect (>60 minutes at 50 mg/filter paper), followed by sage, leavander, tarragon, bergamot, and neroli oils which showed moderate effective (< 40 minutes at 50 mg/filter paper (5 cm diameter)). In the light of global efforts to reduce the level of highly toxic synthetic repellents, essential oils described merit further study as potential repellents for the control of mosquito populations.

• Young-Joon Ahn(WCU Biomodulation Major, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)
• Min-Youl Chang(Cosmetic Dermatology Lab., Research Park, LG Household & Health Care Ltd.)
• Taek-Jong Kwak(Cosmetic Dermatology Lab., Research Park, LG Household & Health Care Ltd.)
• Jun-Ran Kim(WCU Biomodulation Major, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)
• Nam-Jin Kim(Entomology Major, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)
• Haribalan Perumalsamy(Entomology Major, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)