Apoptotic regulation and mutagenesis in human cells exposes to charged particles of importance for spaceflight
Abstract
Exposure to ionizing radiation can elicit two modes of cell death - necrosis or apoptosis. In human lymphoid cells, the predominant mechanism of radiation- induced cell death is apoptosis. The most likely exposure of individual human cells to heavy ions (e.g. Fe or Si) during spaceflight will result from single particle traversals. Here we report the fluence-response for apoptosis in human TK6 B- lymp hoblasts and provide evidence that single Fe ion traversals can stimulate an apoptotic response. The apoptotic response to charged particle exposures includes scrambling of the phospholipid bilayer in the cell membrane, activation of caspase signaling cascades and degradation of DNA into oligonucleosomes. We have also explored the importance of apoptotic regulation on the frequency and spectrum of mutations arising after exposure to charged particles. We used isogenic derivatives of TK6 cells stably transfected with pSFFV-neo-bcl-xL (encoding the anti-apoptotic gene BCL-XL and the neomycin resistance gene) or with pSFFV neo (encoding only- the neomycin resistance gene). TK6-bclxL cells were more susceptible to mutations at the TK1 locus than TK6-neo cells following exposure to protons, silicon ions or Fe ions. Molecular analysis demonstrated that most Fe-ion-induced mutations arose by loss of heterozygosity (LOH). In TK6-bclxL cells, more of the LOH occurred via mitotic recombination than in TK6-neo cells where the predominant mode of LOH was via deletion. We are currently mapping the LOH tracts to further define the biological bases for the differential sensitivity to Fe-ion-induced mutagenesis as a function of the genotype of the cell at risk. Supported by NASA grant T-964W to A. Kronenberg
- Publication:
-
34th COSPAR Scientific Assembly
- Pub Date:
- 2002
- Bibcode:
- 2002cosp...34E2995K