Apoptosis in Growing Hair Follicles Following Gamma-Irradiation and Application for the Evaluation of Radioprotective Agents
June 2003
in “
PubMed
”
TLDR Radiation increases cell death in hair follicles, but certain treatments can protect against this effect.
In a study conducted 20 years ago, researchers examined the effects of gamma-irradiation on hair follicles in mice and the potential of radioprotective agents. The study found that gamma-irradiation led to a dose-related increase in apoptotic (cell death) cells in the hair follicles. The highest frequency of apoptotic cells was observed 12 hours after exposure to 100 cGy of gamma-rays. However, pretreatment with diethyldithiocarbamate (DDC) 30 minutes before irradiation or green tea 12 and 36 hours before irradiation significantly reduced the frequency of radiation-induced apoptosis in hair follicles. The researchers concluded that this model could be useful in detecting radiation response and evaluating radioprotective agents.