Figure 3-12. — Normal mitotic divisions in normal Stage II (morula) embryo of silver hake, Merhiccius bilinearis. Arrows 

 point lo two normal mitoses and a normal nondividing cell (100 x oil immersion objective, light microscope). 



Figure 3-13. — Characteristic pattern of grossly abnormal mitoses (as at upper- and lowermost arrows) and cell deterioration 

 observed in similar stage of the fourbeard rockling eggs from area contaminated by gasoline. Patches of amorphous material 

 remain in wide spaces between shrunken appearing ceD groups as at lower middle arrow in Figure 3-13. Note large difference 

 between mitoses as observed in normal Figure 3-12 and this grossly abnormal Figure 3-13. PostspiD day 2 (100 x oil immer- 

 sion objective, light microscope). 



Again, such undersized mitotic figures have not been previously 

 observed. It appeared almost as if these embryos had been exposed 

 to a dehydrating agent prior to their fixation, an error that could 



not have occurred in their processing for microscopic study. Direct 

 exposure of these eggs to the gasoline could have elicited these 

 anomalous phenomena. 



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