Dwarfism and Eye Abnormality in X-Irradiated Rat Populations

Abstract

Dwarf rats were 3-4 times as frequent in irradiated populations as in control populations. Offspring were examined throughout 4 generations. The frequency of dwarfism was higher in later generations and in generations subjected to larger doses. In some cases dwarfs were afflicted with eye abnormalities. In the pedigree of the one dwarf with eye defect successfully bred, dwarfs and animals with eye abnormalities appeared separately, i.e., no animal was observed to have both defects. It was concluded that the casual factor was a single gene with dominant and irregular expression.