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Long-term effects of irradiation with iron-56 particles on the nigrostriatal dopamine system

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Abstract

Exposure to heavy ions during a Mars mission might damage the brain, thus compromising mission success and the quality of life of returning astronauts. Several workers have suggested that the dopamine system is particularly sensitive to heavy ion radiation, but direct evidence for this notion is lacking. We examined measures of brain dopamine viability at times up to 15 months after acute exposure of rats to 56Fe (1.2–2.4 Gy). No effects were seen in brain sections stained for tyrosine hydroxylase, the classical marker for dopamine cells and nerve terminals. Locomotion stimulated by cocaine, which directly activates the dopamine system, was reduced at 6 months but not at 12 months. Furthermore, in a visually cued lever-pressing test, reaction times, which are prolonged by dopamine system damage, were identical in irradiated and control animals. However, learning times were increased by irradiation. Our data suggest that the midbrain dopamine system is not especially sensitive to damage by 56Fe particles at doses much higher than would be associated with travel to and from Mars.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by a grant to SJG from NASA at the Brookhaven National Laboratory and Northeastern University. We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Dr Peter Guida, Ms Bea Pyatt and other NSRL staff during irradiations. We are also grateful to Professor John Neill of Long Island University for his many helpful comments, and to Dr Lesley Ricci of Northeastern University for her help and advice with immunohistochemistry and image analysis.

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  1. Onarae V. Rice

    Present address: Department of Psychology, Furman University, Greenville, SC, 29613, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Translational Neuroimaging, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, 11973, USA

    Onarae V. Rice, Magalie Bruneus & Samuel J. Gatley

  2. Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Natasha Dehktyar & Samuel J. Gatley

  3. Biopsychology Program, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA

    Alicia V. Grande & John K. Robinson

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  1. Onarae V. Rice
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Correspondence to Samuel J. Gatley.

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Rice, O.V., Grande, A.V., Dehktyar, N. et al. Long-term effects of irradiation with iron-56 particles on the nigrostriatal dopamine system. Radiat Environ Biophys 48, 215–225 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-009-0220-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-009-0220-5

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