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About the Authors:
Cam T. Ha
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Xiang-Hong Li
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Dadin Fu
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Maria Moroni
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Carolyn Fisher
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Robert Arnott
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Venkataraman Srinivasan
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Mang Xiao
* E-mail: [email protected]
Affiliation: Radiation Countermeasures Program, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
Introduction
Radiation injuries are heterogeneous disorders that involve many pathophysiological pathways and affect both cells directly exposed to radiation and cells not directly exposed. Normal tissue injuries induced by ionizing radiation differ depending on the type of radiation, dose and dose-rate of radiation exposure, and the varied radiation-tolerances in target organs and cells. For example, a γ-radiation dose above 1 Gy in humans or mice poses a risk of destruction of the bone marrow (BM) and damage to the hematopoietic system [1], [2], whereas only high-dose (10 Gy or more) total-body irradiation (TBI) in experimental mice can result in acute generalized gastrointestinal (GI) syndrome with loss of intestinal crypts, damage to crypt stem cells, and breakdown of the GI mucosal barrier, leading to animal death [3]–[5]. In addition, total-body 60Co γ-radiation induced 90% mortality within 30 days (LD90/30) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) at doses of 9.6 Gy in CD2F1 mice [6], 1.86 Gy in Gottingen minipigs [7] and 7.56 Gy in rhesus macaques (LD90/60 without supportive care) [8], showing...