Abstract
Electrophoretic methods of mutant detection in mice are described. Spermatogonial exposure of parental male mice to a 250 mg/kg dose of ethylnitrosourea resulted in greatly elevated frequencies of electrophoretically detectable mutants in their F1 progeny. Two major categories of mutants were observed, deficiency mutants and electrophoretic mobility mutants. Deficiency mutants were induced to higher average frequencies than electrophoretic mobility mutants. Since no newly arisen mutants were found in control groups, the spontaneous background mutation rates are not known. However, various comparisons with previous data suggest that ENU caused a 1000- or greater-fold increase in the spontaneous mutation rate at some loci.
A small prenatal recessive-lethal test was also conducted, but resulting data do not substantiate the very high recessive lethal frequency that was predicted from the frequencies of extreme deficiency (null) mutatants. Recessive lethal-mutable loci may have lower spontaneous mutation rates (or be less ENU-mutagen sensitive) than some null-mutable loci. The degree to which such mutations as those detected by electrophoresis contribute measurably to harmful genetic change is difficult to assess since no obvious detrimental effects were associated with any of the induced mutants in heterozygous condition. It is possible that the combined effects of many deficiency mutations with small effects may be as significant as dominant mutations that cause severe abnormalities. However, the number of null-mutable loci of functional importance may not be large. An expanded set of loci at which biochemical genetic variation and other mutants can be detected is recommended for future investigations of induced mutation in mice.
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© 1983 Plenum Press, New York
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Johnson, F.M., Lewis, S.E. (1983). The Detection of ENU-Induced Mutants in Mice by Electrophoresis and the Problem of Evaluating the Mutation Rate Increase. In: de Serres, F.J., Sheridan, W. (eds) Utilization of Mammalian Specific Locus Studies in Hazard Evaluation and Estimation of Genetic Risk. Environmental Science Research, vol 28. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3739-3_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3739-3_7
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