Genetic effects of strong magnetic fields in drosophila melanogaster: II. Lack of interaction between homogeneous fields and fission neutron-plus-gamma radiation
✍ Scribed by Kale, P. G. ;Baum, J. W.
- Publisher
- Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
- Year
- 1980
- Weight
- 445 KB
- Volume
- 2
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0192-2521
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Anticipated use of extremely large magnets in future, controlled thermonuclear reactors and occasional exposures in various occupational and research environments both require that biological effects of these fields be investigated. According to some estimates, the magnetic field intensities inside the shields will be as high as 100,000 gauss (G) and, at a distance of a few meters, it may be 10 G. Preliminary studies, in which Tradescantia inflorescences were exposed to field intensities from' 670-37,000 G for periods from 0.9 to 28 days, yielded results that indicated a lack of production of pink mutations in stamen hair, micronuclei formation, and pollen abortion [ 2 ] . We have studied genetic effects of high magnetic field intensities ranging from 13,000-37,000 G, using Drosophila melanogaster [ 111 . Results from these experiments provided no evidence of a statistically significant increase in the frequency of sex-linked, recessive, lethals in adult Drosophila males. However, since ionizing radiation -both gamma and neutronalso may be present in the vicinity of controlled thermonuclear reactors and high-energy accelerators, it is important to test for possible interaction (synergistic or antagonistic) between radiation and magnetic field effects. Such interaction was studied by Close and Beischer [3] for mean life span and by Mittler [14] for sex-linked recessive lethals, using low magnetic field intensities and short exposure periods. We have employed much longer exposures, stronger fields, and a combination neutron and gamma radiation exposure.