Longevity and Mortality Distributions of Mice With and Without X-Ray Exposure to 45 Generations of Male Progenitors 1

Abstract

Summary

Longevity and mortality distributions were observed on two H-2 genotype substrains of mice within each of two lines. Two substrains (H-2^f and H-2^k) were from 45 generations of X-irradiated male progenitors, and two were from nonirradiated progenitors with the same degree of inbreeding. Lifespan differed significantly for H-2 genotypes within the two lines but not for the same genotypes between lines. It was concluded that life shortening was not a genetic consequence of 45 generations of exposure to over 4500 times the background radiation level. The data also suggest a single-gene effect on longevity.