Stage-sensitivity and dose-response curve of u.v. effect on germ cell formation in embryos of Xenopus laevis.

Ultraviolet light (u.v.) irradiation of the vegetal hemisphere of Xenopus laevis eggs resulted in the elimination of primordial germ cells in tadpoles. Quantitative studies were performed on this phenomenon. The stage sensitivity to u.v. inactivation of germ cell formation was obtained for the early developmental stages ranging from immediately after fertilization to small-cell blastula. It was found that u.v. irradiation at the stage immediately after fertilization was more injurious than irradiation at the beginning of the first cleavage. After deciding optimal conditions for this u.v. irradiation experiment, a dose-response curve of the phenomenon was obtained. It showed a good agreement with the theoretical expectation, which the authors had previously presented.