Abstract
Spleen tissue from prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) and white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) was analyzed using flow cytometry to assess possible genetic damage and cell cycle disruptions following exposure to radionuclides and nitroaromatic contamination at Weldon Spring Training Area in eastern Missouri. Rodents were trapped within areas contaminated with radionuclides (RAD) and nitroaromatics (TNT), as well as within nearby uncontaminated areas (Control). Male prairie voles from both RAD and TNT groups had a significantly lower proportion of cells in the G2+Metaphase portion of the cell cycle than males from the Control group and females from Control, RAD, and TNT groups. White-footed mice, both males and females, from the TNT group had a significantly higher proportion of cells in the G2+Metaphase portion of the cell cycle than mice from the Control group. In addition, male white-footed mice from the Control group had a significantly higher proportion of cells in the S-phase of the cell cycle than males from the TNT group and females from both Control and TNT groups. These results indicate cell cycle disruptions are caused by exposure to nitroaromatics and radionuclides, and physiological and ecological differences probably account for the male-specific responses observed in both species of rodent. These differences may reflect a gender bias in the ability to tolerate contaminants.
Wickliffe, Jeffrey Kirk (1997). Genetic damage and cell cycle perturbations: biomarkers of effect in natural populations. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1997 -THESIS -W347.