Mutagenesis in Mature Drosophila Spermatozoa by "Triazine" Applied in Vaginal Douches.

UTAGENESIS in germ cells of Drosophila melanogaster males by 2: 4: 6-tri M (ethyleneimin0)-1 : 3 : 5-triazine (“triazine”) has been proven and investigated by the FAHMY’S (BIRD 1952; FAHMY and BIRD 1953; FAHMY and FAHMY 1953, 1954, 1955) and has also been studied by LUERS (1953). The purposes of the present studies were to test whether triazine, like nitrogen mustard (HERSKOWITZ 1947, 1949, 1955a; SCHALET and HERSKOWITZ 1954; SCHALET 1955), formaldehyde (HERSKOWITZ 1953, 1955a), propylene oxide and ethyl sulfate (SCHALET 1954) is mutagenic to sperm known to be mature at the time of treatment, and if so (a) whether it is mutagenically more effective to treat mature sperm by means of a succession of vaginal douches of a weaker solution of triazine rather than by a single treatment of a higher concentration, and (b) whether triazine can also induce a relatively high frequency of reciprocal translocations under the same conditions that gave a positive response for a nitrogen mustard (SCHALET 1955). Some of the results presented have been reported earlier (HERSKOWITZ 1955b).