In 1931, Hermann J. Muller’s postdoctoral student, George D. Snell (Nobel Prize recipient––1980) initiated research to replicate with mice Muller’s X-ray-induced mutational findings with fruit flies. Snell failed to induce the two types of mutations of interest, based on fly data (sex-linked lethals/recessive visible mutations) even though the study was well designed, used large doses of X-rays, and was published in Genetics. These findings were never cited by Muller, and the Snell paper (Snell, Genetics 20:545–567, 1935) did not cite the 1927 Muller paper (Muller, Science 66:84, 1927). This situation raises questions concerning how Snell wrote the paper (e.g., ignoring the significance of not providing support for Muller’s findings in a mammal). The question may be raised whether professional pressures were placed upon Snell to downplay the significance of his findings, which could have negatively impacted the career of Muller and the LNT theory. While Muller would receive worldwide attention, and receive the Nobel Prize in 1946 “for the discovery that mutations can be induced by X-rays,” Snell’s negative mutation data were almost entirely ignored by his contemporary and subsequent radiation genetics/mutation researchers. This raises questions concerning how the apparent lack of interest in Snell’s negative findings helped Muller professionally, including his success in using his fruit fly data to influence hereditary and cancer risk assessment and to obtain the Nobel Prize.

1931 年，赫尔曼·J·穆勒 (Hermann J. Muller) 的博士后学生乔治·D·斯内尔 (George D. Snell)（1980 年诺贝尔奖获得者）发起了研究，用小鼠复制穆勒在果蝇中的 X 射线诱导突变发现。斯内尔未能根据果蝇数据（性相关致死/隐性可见突变）诱发两种感兴趣的突变，尽管该研究设计良好，使用了大剂量的 X 射线，并发表在《遗传学》杂志上。 Muller 从未引用过这些发现，Snell 的论文（Snell, Genetics 20:545–567, 1935）也没有引用 1927 年 Muller 的论文（Muller, Science 66:84, 1927）。这种情况引发了有关斯内尔如何撰写论文的问题（例如，忽略了不为穆勒在哺乳动物中的发现提供支持的重要性）。可能会提出这样的问题：斯内尔是否受到职业压力，要求淡化他的发现的重要性，这可能对穆勒的职业生涯和 LNT 理论产生负面影响。虽然 Muller 受到了全世界的关注，并于 1946 年因“发现 X 射线诱导突变”而获得诺贝尔奖，但 Snell 的负突变数据几乎完全被他同时代和后来的辐射遗传学/突变研究人员所忽视。这引发了人们的疑问，即对斯内尔的负面发现明显缺乏兴趣如何在专业上帮助穆勒，包括他成功地利用果蝇数据影响遗传和癌症风险评估并获得诺贝尔奖。