Mice were intraperitoneally injected with a single dose of aqueous solution of CdCl₂ (0.008%) at the rate of 1 ml/100 gms of body weight (i.e. 0.8 mcg/g of bw approx) and were sacrificed at 6 different fixation intervals, viz. at 6 hr, 12 hr, 24 hr, 48 hr, 72 hr and 96 hr.

0.06 ml of each of the 30th and 200th potency of the homeopathic drug Cadmium sulphoricum in liquid (90% ethyl alcohol) prepared by the standard homeopathic procedure of centesimal dilutions and succussions 3233 by Hapco, 165 Bipin Behari Ganguly Street, Kolkata, was diluted separately with 20 ml of double distilled water to make stock solutions of the homeopathic drug that was orally administered to experimental mice. In India, these two potencies are most commonly used by the homeopathic practitioners and are easily available in the market.

1 drop of stock solution (0.06 ml) of the homeopathic drug (both 30th and 200th potencies in separate series) was orally administered to mice with the aid of a pipette every 4 hr prior to the injection of CdCl₂. The respective times of beginning of drug feeding before injection were 6 hr, 12 hr, 24 hr, 48 hr, 72 hr and 96 hr to the sets of mice destined to be sacrificed at 6 hr, 12 hr, 24 hr, 48 hr, 72 hr and 96 hr, respectively. As for example, the mice destined to be sacrificed at 24 hr would start receiving the homeopathic drug 24 hr before Cadmium chloride injection and those destined to be sacrificed at 48 hr would start receiving the drug 48 hr before injection. In case of pre-fed series, the mice were not fed homeopathic drug after injection. But in the pre- and post-fed combined series, the mice were fed the homeopathic drug both prior to and after the injection. Similarly, in the post-fed series, mice were fed the homeopathic drug only after injection of Cadmium chloride.

Different sets (consisting of 5 mice each) of adult healthy mice were fed 1 drop (0.06 ml) of the stock solution of drug (either 30th or 200th potency) at an interval of 4 hour (during day time only i.e. generally 4 times a day) i.e. the drug was fed twice at an interval of 4 hour to mice sacrificed at 6 hr, thrice to mice sacrificed at 12 hr and 6 times to mice sacrificed at 24 hr and so on, starting at 5 minutes after injection.

In this series different sets of mice (each comprising 5 mice) were fed potentized drug both before and after injection in similar manner as stated above and sacrificed at the 6 different fixation intervals.

Since the "vehicle" of the homeopathic drug was 90% ethyl alcohol, the same was also potentized to form alcohol-30 and alcohol-200 by the homeopathic procedure of dilutions and succussions. 1 drop (0.06 ml) each of alcohol-30 and alcohol-200 was then diluted separately with 20 ml of double distilled water to produce the stock solutions of succussed alcohol-30 and alcohol-200, respectively. 1 drop (0.06 ml) each of the stock solution of alcohol-30 and alcohol-200 was fed to separate sets of mice (also comprising 5 mice in each set) serving as control at all corresponding intervals of the drug treated series. In earlier experiments in this laboratory another control with unsuccussed dilute alcohol was also used to be maintained, but since no significant difference was observed in the results between succussed alcohol fed series and dilute alcohol fed series, data of this control were not considered and incorporated in the present study for limiting the size of the tables.

One group (5 mice) of normal healthy mice were scanned for spontaneous levels of CA, MNE, MI and SHA, and another group (5 mice each), only fed with repeated doses of Cad sulph-30 or Cad sulph-200 at intervals corresponding to drug fed series, were also scanned for the same protocols.

Chromosomes were prepared from the bone marrow cells by following the conventional colchicine-citrate-flame-drying-Giemsa stain method. The nomenclature of Crippa 36 was followed in grouping the chromosomes into five size-classes.

For the study of MI and MNE, bone marrow cells of mice not treated with colchicine were centrifuged in 1% sodium citrate solution. The materials collected at the bottom were then smeared on clean grease free slides and allowed to air-dry. Air-dried slides were stained with May-Grunwald-Giemsa as per the conventional method 3738.

For the study of SHA, sperm collected from epididymis in normal saline. It was made free from fat, vas deferens and other tissue debries. Then the material was thoroughly shaken to make the sperm free to suspend in the saline solution. The sperm suspension was filtered, spread on clean grease-free slides, air dried and stained with Giemsa as per the routine technique 39.

The observer was "blinded" during observation and scoring of different parameters in the treated and control series to remove the possibility of any 'bias' during scoring of data.

Both Cad Sulph-30 and Cad Sulph-200 could reduce the frequencies of CA in almost all the fixation intervals except for Cad Sulph-30 at 6 hr and the reductions were quite significant in later intervals (p < 0.05 – p < 0.001). The maximum protection was shown at 48 hr in case of both the drugs after which the extent of protection declined. When the efficacy of two potencies was compared Cad Sulph-200 showed more protection in all the fixation intervals than that of Cad Sulph-30 (Table 1, Fig. 2).

Both Cad Sulph-30 and Cad Sulph-200 could reduce the frequencies of CA in all the fixation intervals. Both the drugs showed maximum protection at 24 hr, after which it declined. Again Cad Sulph-200 showed more protection in all the fixation intervals than that of Cad Sulph-30 (Table 2, Fig. 6).

Both the drugs showed significant (except for 6 hr) protections in all the fixation intervals. Cad Sulph-200 showed more protection than that of Cad Sulph-30 (Table 3, Fig. 10).