Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a unique radiotherapy of selectively eradicating tumor cells using boron compounds (e.g., 4-borono-L-phenylalanine [BPA]) that are heterogeneously taken up at the cellular level.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe knowledge on responses of human lens epithelial cells (HLECs) to ionizing radiation exposure is important to understand mechanisms of radiation cataracts that are of concern in the field of radiation protection and radiation therapy. However, biological effects in HLECs following protracted exposure have not yet fully been explored. Here, we investigated the temporal kinetics of γ-H2AX foci as a marker for DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and cell survival in HLECs after exposure to photon beams at various dose rates (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF. The delivery of intensity-modulated radiation fields has improved the conformity of dose to tumour targets during radiotherapy (RT). Previously, it has been shown that intercellular communication between cells positioned in- and outside of the radiation field impacts cellular radiosensitivity under hypoxic and normoxic conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFComplex DNA double-strand break (DSB), which is defined as a DSB coupled with additional strand breaks within 10 bp in this study, induced after ionizing radiation or X-rays, is recognized as fatal damage which can induce cell death with a certain probability. In general, a DSB site inside the nucleus of live cells can be experimentally detected using the γ-H2AX focus formation assay. DSB complexity is believed to be detected by analyzing the focus size using such an assay.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMagnetic resonance-guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) has been developed and installed in recent decades for external radiotherapy in several clinical facilities. Lorentz forces modulate dose distribution by charged particles in MRgRT; however, the impact of Lorentz forces on low-energy electron track structure and early DNA damage induction remain unclear. In this study, we estimated features of electron track structure and biological effects in a static magnetic field (SMF) using a general-purpose Monte Carlo code, particle and heavy ion transport code system (PHITS) that enables us to simulate low-energy electrons down to 1 meV by track-structure mode.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCesium-bearing microparticles (Cs-BMPs) can reach the human respiratory system after inhalation, resulting in chronic local internal exposure. We previously investigated the spatial distribution of DNA damage induced in areas around a Cs-BMP; however, the biological impacts have not been fully clarified due to the limited amount of data. Here, we investigated the inflammatory signaling and DNA damage responses after local exposure to a Cs-BMP in vitro.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHypoxic cancer cells within solid tumours show radio-resistance, leading to malignant progression in fractionated radiotherapy. When prescribing dose to tumours under heterogeneous oxygen pressure with intensity-modulated radiation fields, intercellular signalling could have an impact on radiosensitivity between in-field and out-of-field (OF) cells. However, the impact of hypoxia on radio-sensitivity under modulated radiation intensity remains to be fully clarified.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRadiation weighting factor w for photons and electrons has been defined as unity independently of the energy of the particles. However, the biological effects depend on the incident energies according to in vitro experimental data. In this study, we have quantified the energy concentration along electron tracks in terms of dose-mean lineal energy (y) on chromosome (micro-meter) and DNA (nano-meter) order scales by Monte Carlo simulations, and evaluated the impact of photon energies on DNA double-strand break (DNA-DSB) induction from an experimental study of irradiated cells.
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