Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology

This study examined the possibility of using dark-striped field mice as a biological indicator for the environmental radio-surveillance. For this study, dark-striped field mice were caught from five areas of Kyonggi, Kyongsang, Chungchong and Cholla provinces. The external morphological characteristics and isoenzymic types of dark-striped field mice were studied after they were captured. Among the external morphological characteristics, the dark-brown coat, dark back stripe, head-to-tail length, tail length, and ear length matched the taxonomical characteristics of darkstriped field mice. The analyses on L-lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, and malate dehydrogenese revealed that one species of dark-striped field mice, called Apodemus agrarius, was inhabitated throughout a wide range of Korea. On the other hand, the frequency of micronuclei in peripheral polychromatic erythrocytes to survived mice after irradiation also analyzed. The LD50/30 of A. agrarius and ICR mice were approximately 5 Gy and 7.9Gy, respectively. The results of the study reveal that wild A. agrarius have a high potential as a biological monitoring system to determine the impact of radiation in areas such as those within the vicinity of nuclear power plants.

Keywords

Apodemus agrarius,radiosensitivity,ecological and biological dosimeter,and ICR.