Scoring of radiation-induced micronuclei in cytokinesis-blocked human lymphocytes by automated image analysis

Journal Article · Sat Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1994 · Cytometry

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/cyto.990170203· OSTI ID:219851

Verhaegen, F; Seuntjens, J; Thierens, H ^[1]

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1. Standard Dosimetry Lab., Gent (Belgium); and others

The micronucleus assay in human lymphocytes is, at present, frequently used to assess chromosomal damage caused by ionizing radiation or mutagens. Manual scoring of micronuclei (MN) by trained personnel is very time-consuming, tiring work, and the results depend on subjective interpretation of scoring criteria. More objective scoring can be accomplished only if the test can be automated. Furthermore, an automated system allows scoring of large numbers of cells, thereby increasing the statistical significance of the results. This is of special importance for screening programs for low doses of chromosome-damaging agents. In this paper, the first results of our effort to automate the micronucleus assay with an image-analysis system are represented. The method we used is described in detail, and the results are compared to those of other groups. Our system is able to detect 88% of the binucleated lymphocytes on the slides. The procedure consists of a fully automated localization of binucleated cells and counting of the MN within these cells, followed by a simple and fast manual operation in which the false positives are removed. Preliminary measurements for blood samples irradiated with a dose of 1 Gy X-rays indicate that the automated system can find 89% {plus_minus} 12% of the micronuclei within the binucleated cells compared to a manual screening. 18 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab.

• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• OSTI ID: 219851
• Journal Information: Cytometry, Journal Name: Cytometry Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 17; ISSN CYTODQ; ISSN 0196-4763
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

44 INSTRUMENTATION
INCLUDING NUCLEAR AND PARTICLE DETECTORS
55 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
BASIC STUDIES
56 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
APPLIED STUDIES
AUTOMATION
CELL NUCLEI
CHROMOSOMAL ABERRATIONS
GENETIC RADIATION EFFECTS
HUMAN CHROMOSOMES
IMAGE SCANNERS
IONIZING RADIATIONS
LYMPHOCYTES
MUTAGENS
SCREENING
STATISTICS