Effects of cobalt-60 gamma-irradiation in association with prostaglandin E1 treatment on the cyclic AMP levels of some radiosensitive tissues.

The amounts of cyclic AMP in brain, liver and intestinal mucosa have been measured in rats, at constant intervals, up to 18 days after whole-body exposure to either a unique moderate dose (500 rd) or a unique lethal dose (750 rd) of cobalt-60 gamma-radiation in association with a preliminary intraperitoneally treatment with prostaglandin E1 (5 microgram/100 g body weight/day) during five days. The amounts of tissular cyclic AMP in these two experimental groups were compared with those obtained from control groups identically irradiated or treated with prostaglandin E1. The effects of gamma-irradiation and prostaglandin E1 treatment on the cyclic AMP levels were found to be quite specific in these organs, suggesting that they contain different adenyl cyclase-cyclic AMP-phosphodiesterase systems: a cerebral system which is influenced by both gamma-radiation and prostaglandin E1, a hepatic system which is "radioresistant" and an intestinal system which is not influenced by prostaglandin E1. When associated with gamma-radiation, this prostaglandin is capable, on the one hand, to annul the "radioresistance" of the hepatic cyclic AMP system and, on the other hand, to annul the "radiosensitivity" of the intestinal cyclic AMP system.