The effects of chronic ethanol consumption on goniomitosis in the rat.

Male rats, provided with dissimilar diets with regard to thiamine (deficient, normal and superfluous) received either water or alcohol (7-20%: w/v) as the only supply of liquid for 4-7 months. Mitotic acitivity was very low in the spermatogonia of many of the individuals especially those belonging to the alcohol groups. The frequency of cells with visible chromosomal defects was invariably quite low. It seems that combining abnormal thiamine supply with alcoholism does not lead to a drastic increase in the frequency of chromosomal aberrations.