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mFISH analysis of chromosome aberrations in workers occupationally exposed to mixed radiation

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Abstract

We performed a study on the presence of chromosome aberrations in a cohort of plutonium workers of the Mayak production association (PA) with a mean age of 73.3 ± 7.2 years to see whether by multi-color fluorescence in situ hybridization (mFISH) translocation analysis can discriminate individuals who underwent occupational exposure with internal and/or external exposure to ionizing radiation 40 years ago. All Mayak PA workers were occupationally exposed to chronic internal alpha-radiation due to incorporated plutonium-239 and/or to external gamma-rays. First, we obtained the translocation yield in control individuals by mFISH to chromosome spreads of age-matched individuals and obtained background values that are similar to previously published values of an international study (Sigurdson et al. in Mutat Res 652:112–121, 2008). Workers who had absorbed a total dose of >0.5 Gy external gamma-rays to the red bone marrow (RBM) displayed a significantly higher frequency of stable chromosome aberrations relative to a group of workers exposed to <0.5 Gy gamma-rays total absorbed RBM dose. Thus, the translocation frequency may be considered to be a biological marker of external radiation exposure even years after the exposure. In a group of workers who were internally exposed and had incorporated plutonium-239 at a body burden >1.48 kBq, mFISH revealed a considerable number of cells with complex chromosomal rearrangements. Linear associations were observed for translocation yield with the absorbed RBM dose from external gamma-rays as well as for complex chromosomal rearrangements with the plutonium-239 body burden.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Southern Urals Biophysics Institute (SUBI), 19 Ozyorskoe Shosse, Ozyorsk, Chelyabinsk Region, 456780, Russia

    Natalia V. Sotnik, Sergey V. Osovets & Tamara V. Azizova

  2. Bundeswehr Institute of Radiobiology Affiliated to the University of Ulm, Neuherbergstr. 11, 80937, Munich, Germany

    Harry Scherthan

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  1. Natalia V. Sotnik
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  2. Sergey V. Osovets
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  4. Tamara V. Azizova
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Correspondence to Natalia V. Sotnik.

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Sotnik, N.V., Osovets, S.V., Scherthan, H. et al. mFISH analysis of chromosome aberrations in workers occupationally exposed to mixed radiation. Radiat Environ Biophys 53, 347–354 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-014-0536-7

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