Tests for Chemical Mutagens in Drosophila Using the Vaginal Douche Technic.

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Abstract
Vaginal douches of 4% methyl-bis-([beta]-chloroethyl)-amine HC1 produced 53 lethals in 5488 egg and sperm X chromosomes tested while only 13 lethals were observed in the 6271 sperm or egg X chromosomes tested after treatments with formaldehyde, CUSO4, 2,4-dinitrophenol, hydrazine hydrate and trypsin. The practicality of the vaginal douche technic for the induction of mutations with N mustard in both sperm and eggs, which was suggested from previous expts., is confirmed in that 30 lethals occurred in the 2951 sperm tested and 23 in the 2537 eggs tested. The no. of sperm X chromosome lethals seems to be considerably higher in F1 females resulting from single copulations within a 2-hr. period from the time of injn. (23 lethals in 1416 tests) than it is in females from copulations after this interval (7 lethals in 1535 tests); the mutation rate for the egg X chromosome under these conditions remains apparently unaffected (9/1083 and 14/1454, respectively). Whereas the 30 sperm lethals seem to be distributed at random among the F1 females oviposited at various times, the frequency of egg lethals in individuals oviposited during the first 2 days (18/649) is statistically larger (P< .01) than the frequency of lethals in F1 females coming from eggs deposited after that time (5/1888). The use and effects of vaginal douche treatments are discussed and the results of the expts. evaluated.

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