Mosquitoes are the most important medical species by transmitting some of deadly infectious diseases to human. Established vector control methods involving the elimination of larval habitats, the use of physical barriers, or those involving insecticides are not sufficient to maintain the populations of these species below the epidemic risk threshold. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a species-specific, non-polluting and environmentally benevolent method of insect control. This technique involves the release of massive numbers of artificially-reared sterile male insects that, due to their abundance, outcompete fertile wild males for mating opportunities with wild female insects. In this study we discuss optimization of the sterilization process and present a simple model and procedure for determining the optimum dose.

The Sakhalin pine longicorn, Monochamus saltuarius Gebler (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), is an insect vector of the pine wilt nematode (PWN), Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner et Buhrer) Nickle, and is widely distributed in central Korea. M. saltuarius is a forest pest that seriously damages Pinus densiflora and Pinus koraiensis forests. We examined the effect of electron beam irradiation on the mating, DNA damage and ovarian development of M. saltuarius adults and sought to identify the optimal dose for sterilizing insects. Our results suggest that pine wilt disease can be effectively controlled if a large number of sterilized M. saltuarius adults are released into the field.