Department of Experimental Physics of Complex Systems, Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, 31-342 Kraków, Poland.
Chair of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Department of Epidemiology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, 31-008 Kraków, Poland.
Cells. 2022 May 16;11(10):1655. doi: 10.3390/cells11101655.
Nuclear medicine staff are constantly exposed to low doses of ionizing radiation. This study investigated the level of genotoxic effects in hospital employees exposed to routinely used I and Tc in comparison with a control group. The study compared the results of physical and biological monitoring in peripheral blood lymphocytes. The effects of confounding factors, such as smoking status and physical activity, were also considered. Physical dosimetry monitoring revealed differences in the individual annual effective dose as measured by finger ring dosimeter and whole-body dosimeter between the I- and Tc-exposed groups. The DNA damage studies revealed differences between the groups in terms of excess premature chromosome condensation (PCC) fragments and tail DNA. Physical activity and smoking status differentiated the investigated groups. When assessed by the level of physical activity, the highest mean values of tail DNA were observed for the Tc group. When assessed by work-related physical effort, excess PCC fragments were significantly higher in the I group than in the control group. In the investigated groups, the tail DNA values were significantly different between non-smokers and past or current smokers, but excess PCC fragments did not significantly differ by smoking status. It is important to measure exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation and assess the potential risk from this exposure. Such investigations support the need to continue epidemiological and experimental studies to improve our understanding of the mechanisms of the health effects of radionuclides and to develop predictive models of the behavior of these complex systems in response to low-dose radiation.
核医学工作人员会持续受到低剂量电离辐射的照射。本研究对比对照组，调查了接触常规使用的碘和锝的医院工作人员的遗传毒性影响程度。研究比较了外周血淋巴细胞的物理和生物监测结果。还考虑了吸烟状况和身体活动等混杂因素的影响。物理剂量监测显示，手指环剂量计和全身剂量计测量的碘和锝暴露组之间，个体年有效剂量存在差异。DNA 损伤研究显示，各组间存在过剩早前期染色体凝聚（PCC）片段和尾部 DNA 的差异。身体活动和吸烟状况区分了研究组。当按身体活动水平评估时，锝组的尾部 DNA 平均值最高。当按与工作相关的体力劳动评估时，碘组的过剩 PCC 片段明显高于对照组。在所研究的各组中，非吸烟者和过去或现在的吸烟者之间的尾部 DNA 值存在显著差异，但吸烟状况对过剩 PCC 片段没有显著影响。测量低剂量电离辐射的暴露并评估这种暴露的潜在风险非常重要。这些调查支持继续进行流行病学和实验研究，以增进我们对放射性核素健康影响机制的理解，并开发这些复杂系统对低剂量辐射的行为的预测模型。
