Abstract
A critical environmental issue facing society is the problem of toxic waste disposal. The escape of toxins into the environment has resulted in local (e.g., Love Canal) or regional (e.g., Chernobyl) human health problems. The threat to human health posed by such pollution is profound, including both short-term and long-term effects. Environmental mutagens can cause somatic mutations that result in cancer or germ cell mutations that lead to impaired fertility or birth defects. Heritable mutations can affect levels of genetic polymorphism and evolutionary processes. Thus, the effects of exposure to such contaminants might be expressed years after the immediate problem has been resolved. Indeed, future generations as well as ourselves are at risk. Therefore, the detection of environmental mutagens, and the development of techniques to accomplish this, should be a high research priority for both health-related and environmental-related agencies. The primary focus of the author’s laboratory has been the comparative cytogenetics and population genetics of various wildlife species. Investigations into vertebrate chromosomal evolution have led to an interest in mutagenesis and the role that environmental mutagens play in ecological and evolutionary processes.
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© 1990 Plenum Press, New York
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Bickham, J.W. (1990). Flow Cytometry as a Technique to Monitor the Effects of Environmental Genotoxins on Wildlife Populations. In: Sandhu, S.S., Lower, W.R., de Serres, F.J., Suk, W.A., Tice, R.R. (eds) In Situ Evaluation of Biological Hazards of Environmental Pollutants. Environmental Science Research, vol 38. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5808-4_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5808-4_9
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