Element Profiles of Mouse Hair: A Concern for Using Hair as a Timetable Repository

July 1993 in “ Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry ”

K.A. Stevenson

TLDR Mouse hair element patterns vary, making it unreliable for tracking time.

The study investigated the element profiles of growth and nongrowth phase hair in C57L/J male mice using a proton microprobe. It found that in growth phase hair, elements like Cl, S, K, and P were concentrated in regions of higher pigmentation, while calcium was confined to the medulla region. In nongrowth phase hair, Cl and S profiles remained unchanged, but K and P were depleted in the hair shaft and concentrated in the cornified root sheath. The element patterns in nongrowth phase mouse hair showed similarities to those in growth phase human hair, raising concerns about using hair as a reliable timetable repository.

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research Element Profiles of Mouse Hair: A Concern for Using Hair as a Timetable Repository

July 1993 in “Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry”

Mouse hair element patterns vary, making it unreliable for tracking time.