Detection of insect exposure to ionizing radiation and its importance in the field of agricultural quarantine

Although the idea of using gamma radiation as a guaranteed treatment for agricultural products is more than 70 years old, the practical applications of this technique were delayed for decades due to scientific and technical reasons. One of the difficulties is related to the criterion used for measuring effectiveness. When using pesticides, death within a short period of time (hours), is used for measuring effectiveness. On the other hand, the criterion used for measuring effectiveness in the case of irradiation treatment depends on the prevention of reaching the adult stage or even sterility; doses that cause mortality within hours are often too high. This creates a problem to quarantine officers at the port of entry when they are faced with a shipment infested with a quarantine pest and claimed to be irradiated. Because mistakes often occur (intentionally or unintentionally), it is necessary for these officers to make sure that the shipment has, indeed, been irradiated and if possible to verify the dose. Research over the last three decades provided several methods to verify insect exposure to ionizing radiation and this article is devoted to discuss these methods, their practicality, advantages and disadvantages. (author)