Induction of gene expression as a monitor of exposure to ionizing radiation.

Abstract Amundson, S. A., Bittner, M., Meltzer, P., Trent, J. and Fornace, A. J., Jr. Induction of Gene Expression as a Monitor of Exposure to Ionizing Radiation. Radiat. Res. 156, 657–661 (2001). The complex molecular responses to genotoxic stress are mediated by a variety of regulatory pathways. The transcription factor TP53 plays a central role in the cellular response to DNA-damaging agents such as ionizing radiation, but other pathways also play important roles. In addition, differences in radiation quality, such as the exposure to high-LET radiation that occurs during space travel, may influence the pattern of responses. The premise is developed that stress gene responses can be employed as molecular markers for radiation exposure using a combination of informatics and functional genomics approaches. Published studies from our laboratory have already demonstrated such transcriptional responses with doses of γ rays as low as 2 cGy, and in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) irradiated ex vivo with do...