THE PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF ACTH IN THE INFANTILE RATS AGAINST X-IRRADIATION

Technical Report · Sat Oct 31 04:00:00 EST 1959

OSTI ID:4293574

Sladic, S D; Radivojevic, D V; Pavic, D M

Newborn rats up to 17 days of age exposed to sublethal doses of x rays were treated directly after irradiation with adrenocorticotropic hormone from the anterior pituitary. Control animals of the same age, which were not treated with ACTR, showed different degrees of protection achieved by treatment, depending upon the age of the animal. Untreated rats up to 10 days of age showed a mortality rate of 83%, whereas for the treated animals the mortality was reduced to 44%. The mortality in both untreated and treated rats between 15 and 17 days of age was 23%, which shows that injected ACTR as such had no protective influence on the treated group. The protective effect of ACTR, in all probability, is mediated through the stress reaction which has been universally accepted as a defense mechanism. Studies have shown that rats up to 10 days of age fail to develop a stress reaction afier irradiation. They have also shown that rats of this age are very sensitive to irradiation and that injected ACTR considerably reduces the mortality rate among them. The rats between 15 and 17 days of age have a fully developed mechanism for the stress reaction to irradiation, and injected ACTH did not enhance their resistance to this particular stressor. (auth)

• Research Organization: Inst. of Nuclear Sciences "Boris Kidric," Belgrade
• NSA Number: NSA-13-006119
• OSTI ID: 4293574
• Report Number(s): A/CONF.15/P/489
• Country of Publication: Country unknown/Code not available
• Language: English

Related Subjects

ACTH
AGE
BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
EFFICIENCY
GLANDS
HORMONES
IRRADIATION
PHYSIOLOGY
PITUITARY GLAND
RADIATION DOSES
RADIOSENSITIVITY
RATS
X RADIATION