A comparison of effects between accelerated heavy ion irradiation and X-irradiation on the development of rat cerebellum.

The purpose of this experiment is to compare the effects of 290 MeV/u carbon-ion irradiation and X-irradiation on the development of rat cerebellum. Pregnant rats were exposed to carbon-ion beams at a single dose of 1.5 Gy on day 19.0 of gestation. Other groups of pregnant rats were exposed to X-rays on day 19.0 at single doses of 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 Gy. Their fetuses were removed 8 hr after exposure, and an acute effect examined microscopically for cell death in the external granular layer of the cerebellum. Other dams were allowed to give birth and rear their litters. The offspring were sacrificed at 6 weeks of age, and their cerebella were examined for foliar malformation. The results showed that the effect of 1.5 Gy carbon-ion irradiation on the development of cerebellum was stronger than that of 1.5 Gy X-irradiation and similar to 2.0-2.5 Gy X-irradiation.