Impact of ionizing radiation on cell-ECM mechanical crosstalk in breast cancer.

The stiffness of the extracellular matrix plays a crucial role in cell motility and spreading, influencing cell morphology through cytoskeleton organization and transmembrane proteins' expression. In this context, mechanical characterization of both cells and the extracellular matrix gains prominence for enhanced diagnostics and clinical decision-making. Here, we investigate the combined effect of mechanotransduction and ionizing radiations on altering cells' mechanical properties, analysing mammary cell lines (MCF10A and MDA-MB-231) after X-ray radiotherapy (2 and 10 Gy).

Radon Exhalation Rate: A Metrological Approach for Radiation Protection.

Radon, a radioactive inert gas that comes from the decay of naturally occurring radioactive species, poses a substantial health risk due to its involvement in lung cancer carcinogenesis. This work proposes a metrological approach for determining radon exhalation rates from diverse building materials. This methodology employs an electrostatic collection chamber for alpha spectrometry of radon isotopic decay products.

Role of the mechanical microenvironment on CD-44 expression of breast adenocarcinoma in response to radiotherapy.

The biological effects of ionizing radiation are exploited in the clinical practice of radiotherapy to destroy tumour cells while sparing the surrounding normal tissue. While most of the radiotherapy research focused on DNA damage and repair, recently a great attention is going to cells' interactions with the mechanical microenvironment of both malignant and healthy tissues after exposure. In fact, the stiffness of the extracellular matrix can modify cells' motility and spreading through the modulation of transmembrane proteins and surface receptors' expression, such as CD-44.