Cell survival after the combined action of manganese (MnCl2) and X-rays in synchronized Chinese hamster cells.

The interactions between the effects of manganese chloride and X-rays were studied in synchronized populations of V79 Chinese hamster fibroblasts. The cells were selected by shaking off asynchronous cultures for detachment of mitotic cells which were plated in petri dishes and exposed to various treatments. Irradiation was carried out with a Philips RT-100 X-ray unit. A final concentration of 0.25 mM MnCl2 was used. The main parameter was the colony forming ability of the surviving cell fraction. When MnCl2 was administered over 1 h, its toxicity was low regardless of the phase of the cell cycle. Administered separately, 2 Gy irradiation produced only a slight decrease in survival, less marked in the S phase. However, the two agents together induced a synergistic inhibition of the surviving fraction in the S phase when the metal was given immediately after irradiation. If manganese was administered 3 h after irradiation the two inhibitory effects apparently remained only additive. It seems that MnCl2 can impair some repair processes starting immediately after irradiation.