Xenia effects of irradiating corn pollen in a nuclear reactor
1950
Frolik, E.F. | Morris, R.
Xenia effects in corn crosses involving tassels irradiated in a nuclear reactor were determined in comparison with crosses involving X-rayed and non-irradiated tassels. Irradiations were made in the thermal neutron column of the heavy water pile at the Argonne National Laboratory for periods of 1/2, 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 minutes, respectively. The X-ray dosage consisted of 1200 r units. In general, the percentage of entire mutations increased with increase in length of time of exposure in the nuclear reactor. The effectiveness of pile radiation varied markedly with date of treatment. There was considerable uniformity in the response of individual plants to comparable irradiation treatments. The effectiveness of X-ray treatment varied somewhere between 1/2 minute and 4 minutes of pile irradiation, depending on date of treatment and on the character involved. The percentage of mutations for both sources of radiation varied for the characters under study in the following decreasing order of frequency: (a) defective kernels, (b) colorless aleurone, (c) sugary endosperm, and (d) red aleurone. The frequency of chimeras was affected far less than that of entire mutations by the pile radiations. No association was apparent between frequency of recoveries and either pile radiation or X radiation. No qualitative differences between the two types of radiation were noted in these tests.
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