Volume-dependent dose-response of the intestinal stem cell niche and lymphoid tissue.

Background And Purpose: Plasticity of the intestinal stem cell compartment in response to radiation injury is regulated by a stem cell niche. We present here the first experimental observations of a dose-volume effect of the intestinal stem cell niche and of the solitary intestinal lymphoid tissues (SILT).

Materials And Methods: Regeneration of intestinal crypts in mice was studied following irradiation of millimetre-size jejunal sections with single doses of 6 to 24 Gy and compared to total body irradiation (TBI).