Cataract--webbed Peromyscus. I. Genetics of cataract in P. maniculatus.

Cataract--webbed (cw) in the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) is a recessive mutant that is manifested by syndactyly (involving soft tissues) and eye defects including cataract. Within cw/cw mice, the age at which cataract first appears is genetically controlled. Evidence for the activity of genetic modifiers is the early appearance of cataracts in the offspring of parents that developed cataracts at early ages.