Re: Radiation Causes Mutations for Several Generations

[RuthWeiner@AOL.COM]

In about 1980, SCIENCE had a very interesting article looking at possible genetic defects ("mutations") in the descendants of atom bomb survivors. The article reached the same apparent conclusions as the RERF study.  The 1980 researchers (and I have forgotten the authors' names) studied the two generations (children and grandchildren) of the survivors.  The study group included only children conceived after the bomb blast.  It included descendants of fathers exposed to the blast, mothers exposed to the blast, and couples both of whom were exposed.  No excess inherited defects were found beyond the normal range of inherited genetic defects found in any human population of that size.  I might point out that the article cited how surprised the researchers were to find no noticeable effect.  As was pointed out in BEIR V, the ordinary rate of "random" genetic defects is exceedingly large!

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Mice aren't people, nor does the quoted article give an X-ray dose.  the article also does not say whether the three strains of mice were bred for laboratories, in which case they would generally be less robust than wild strains.  The extrapolation of an effect from small laboratory animals to people involves a lot of assumptions, and has always been a challenge for risk assessment.  Note, for example, the identification of saccharin as a carcinogen (a number of years ago) on the strength of the effect on laboratory mice.  


Ruth Weiner, Ph. D.

ruthweiner@aol.com