Radiosensitivity of lymphocytes from patients with Alzheimer's disease.

The response after gamma-irradiation of lymphocytes from 8 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), 3 patients with Huntington's disease and 13 normal subjects to stimulation by phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) was assayed by incorporation of [3H]thymidine. The response of non-irradiated cells was found to be significantly lower in AD cells than in age-matched normals but not significantly lower in old normals than in young normals. However, the response of irradiated cells to PHA, expressed as a percentage of that in non-irradiated cells, was found to be similar in AD patients, young and old normals and in HD patients.