137Cs determination and mutagenicity tests in wild Mus musculus domesticus before and after the Chernobyl accident.

ABSTRACT

Wild rodents were collected alive in a suburban area to the north of Rome before, during, 6 months and 1 year after the Chernobyl accident. Radionuclide determinations to assess their content of (137)Cs and mutagenicity tests (bone-marrow micronucleus test and sperm abnormalities assay) were performed on the captured animals. The results obtained for the species Mus musculus domesticus (which was the rodent captured in highest numbers), compared with the results obtained before the fallout, showed an increase of both micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (MPCEs/1000 PCEs) and (137)Cs content during and after the fallout.