Variants of red Cell Enzymes Found in Japanese of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Abstract

In the course of our search for possible genetic effects of radiation among the children of A-bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we have obtained considerable electrophoretic data which clearly illustrate some of the genetic characteristics of the populations of both cities, which characteristics, however, have no relationship with radiation exposure of the parents. The frequencies of variants of phosphoglucomutase₁ (PGM₁) and glucose phosphate isomerase (GPI) were observed to be significantly higher in Nagasaki than in Hiroshima. As the difference in the frequencies of transferrin variants between two cities are also significant, it is apparent that the populations of the two cities are genetically different with respect to variation in certain protein systems.