Use of Radiation and Isotopes in Insects

One of the first successful experiments to verify the effects of an ionizing radiation over an insect (Lasioderma serricorne F., the cigarette beetle) was performed by Runner in 1916. Soon afterwards, Muller demonstrated in 1927 that rays from radioactive substances could induce genetic damage and a larger number of dominant lethal mutations in Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, which were expressed through a reduction in the hatchability of the eggs laid by treated females or fathered by treated males. However, the economic entomologists became really aware that sterility in insects could be quite easily achieved through ionizing radiations only after 1950, when Muller made a great effort to publicize the biological effects of radiation. This was the beginning of a new branch of Science, the Radioentomology. More than 2800 references in literature were published along the past six decades. Over 300 species of arthropods, mostly of economic importance, have already been subjected to irradiation studies for basic research, pest control applications (e.g., the autocidal control known as the Sterile Insect Technique-SIT, and in support of biological control programs), and for disinfestation of commodities (for quarantine and phytosanitary purposes) (Bakri et al., 2005). Besides that, insects may be labelled with stable or radioactive isotopes for ecology or nutrition studies.