Meander tail: a recessive mutant located in chromosome 4 of the mouse.

A variable kinked-tail mutant was found in 1974 in a moderately inbred stock of mice at Iowa State University, Ames. It was named meander tail and was shown to be completely recessive. Study 8 alizarin-stained skeletons showed all degrees of ankylosis or fusions of tail vertebrae and occasionally other vertebrae. Extreme examples had great reduction in number of tail vertebrae. Affected mice over 2 weeks old commonly also show some unsteadiness, presumably a pleiotropic effect of the mutant. Less commonly, one or both hind legs showed some paralysis. Linkage tests of the mutant, symbolized mea, place it fairly close to brown, b, in chromosome 4, and apparently in the small segment between Ps and Pt.