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Updated: Aug 17, 2026

Measuring the Effect of Chemicals on the Growth and Reproduction of Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: October 5, 2017
Radiation effects in Caenorhabditis elegans, mutagenesis by high and low LET ionizing radiation
G A Nelson1, W W Schubert, T M Marshall
1Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena 91109.
Abstract:
The nematode C. elegans was used to measure the effectiveness of high-energy ionized particles in the induction of 3 types of genetic lesions. Recessive lethal mutations in a 40-map unit autosomal region, sterility, and X-chromosome nondisjunction or damage were investigated. Induction rates were measured as a function of linear energy transfer, LET infinity, for 9 ions of atomic number 1-57 accelerated at the BEVALAC accelerator. Linear kinetics were observed for all 3 types of lesions within the dose/fluence ranges tested and varied strongly as a function of particle LET infinity. Relative Biological Effectiveness (RBE) values of up to 4.2 were measured and action cross sections were calculated and compared to mutagenic responses in other systems.
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