Baseline hemogram of peromyscus maniculatus

The Deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus, is being used more extensively as an animal model in biological research. At the Radiobiology Division of the University of Utah, preliminary studies have shown that the radionuclide retention characteristics of Peromyscus, especially involving bone and liver retention, are similar to a well defined beagle model and humans. Also, a colony of Peromyscus under study can be maintained more easily, at less cost, in much less space, and in greater numbers as compared to larger mammals. In addition, mouse studies can be conducted for the same proportion of the animals' life span in much less real time. For these reasons, a concerted effort is underway to define the normal biology of Peromyscus so that the model can be used in radionuclide studies designed to estimate human risk. One phase of this study was to characterize the normal Peromyscus hemogram because of dose-response relationships that exist between the cells of the peripheral blood and bone marrow irradiation. Results have already indicated that this animal model will be of value in estimating the toxicity of Pu-239 and possibly that of other actinide elements in humans