Effects of Radioactive 56MnO2 Particle Inhalation on Mouse Lungs: A Comparison between C57BL and BALB/c
Abishev Z. Ruslanova B. Apbassova S. Shabdarbayeva D. Chaizhunussova N. Dyusupov A. Azhimkhanov A. Zhumadilov K. Stepanenko V. Ivanov S. Shegay P. Kaprin A. Hoshi M. Fujimoto N.
December 2023Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)
International Journal of Molecular Sciences
2023#24Issue 24
The effects of residual radiation from atomic bombs have been considered to be minimal because of its low levels of external radioactivity. However, studies involving atomic bomb survivors exposed to only residual radiation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki have indicated possible adverse health effects. Thus, we investigated the biological effects of radioactive dust of manganese dioxide 56 (56MnO2), a major radioisotope formed in soil by neutron beams from a bomb. Previously, we investigated C57BL mice exposed to 56MnO2 and found pulmonary gene expression changes despite low radiation doses. In this study, we examined the effects in a radiation-sensitive strain of mice, BALB/c, and compared them with those in C57BL mice. The animals were exposed to 56MnO2 particles at two radioactivity levels and examined 3 and 65 days after exposure. The mRNA expression of pulmonary pathophysiology markers, including Aqp1, Aqp5, and Smad7, and radiation-sensitive genes, including Bax, Phlda3, and Faim3, was determined in the lungs. The radiation doses absorbed in the lungs ranged from 110 to 380 mGy; no significant difference was observed between the two strains. No exposure-related pathological changes were observed in the lungs of any group. However, the mRNA expression of Aqp1 was significantly elevated in C57BL mice but not in BALB/c mice 65 days after exposure, whereas no changes were observed in external γ-rays (2 Gy) in either strain. In contrast, Faim3, a radiation-dependently downregulated gene, was reduced by 56MnO2 exposure in BALB/c mice but not in C57BL mice. These data demonstrate that inhalation exposure to 56MnO2 affected the expression of pulmonary genes at doses <380 mGy, which is comparable to 2 Gy of external γ-irradiation, whereas the responses differed between the two mouse strains.
environmental residual radiation , internal radiation exposure , mouse strain differences , radiation-induced lung injury
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Department of Pathological Anatomy and Forensic Medicine, Semey Medical University, Semey, 071400, Kazakhstan
Department of Public Health, Semey Medical University, Semey, 071400, Kazakhstan
Rector’s Office, Semey Medical University, Semey, 071400, Kazakhstan
National Nuclear Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kurchatov, 071100, Kazakhstan
Department of Nuclear Physics, L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan
A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre—Branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Obninsk, 249031, Russian Federation
National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Obninsk, 249036, Russian Federation
The Center for Peace, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, 730-0053, Japan
Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, 734-0037, Japan
Department of Pathological Anatomy and Forensic Medicine
Department of Public Health
Rector’s Office
National Nuclear Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Department of Nuclear Physics
A. Tsyb Medical Radiological Research Centre—Branch of the National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation
National Medical Research Radiological Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation
The Center for Peace
Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine
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