Chinese hamster ovary cell mitosis and its response to ionizing radiation: a morphological analysis of the living cell.

Repeated microscopic observations of exponentially growing Chinese hamster ovary cells were made and the times and mitotic stages were recorded in control and irradiated cultures at 37 degrees C. As determined by autoradiography, the time from the end of S phase to early prophase (the G2 phase) was 46 min, to breakdown of the nuclear envelope was 91 min, and to restoration of the nuclear envelope was 116 min. The time spent in morphologically distinguishable phases of mitosis and the effects of 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 4.0 Gy of gamma or X radiation on cells at each phase were determined. Affected cells were found to be delayed without or with reversion to an earlier mitotic stage before recovering and advancing through mitosis. Cells were timed in the five steps comprising delay with reversion: inertia, cessation I, regression, cessation II, and reprogression. No cells treated in late prophase, i.e., within 8-10 min of nuclear envelope breakdown, were delayed by the doses used; therefore the critical or transition point must be situated in middle prophase. Cells irradiated in this stage were not delayed by 0.5 or 1.0 Gy, but suffered a dose-dependent delay with or without reversion after 1.5, 2.0, and 4.0 Gy. Cells irradiated in early prophase and very late interphase responded similarly, but a greater percentage of the latter reverted.