Modeling of acute radiation syndrome in experiment

• Published in: Radiacionnaâ gigiena Vol. 18; no. 2; pp. 56 - 65
• Main Authors: Popova, A. A., Chipiga, L. A., Maystrenko, D. N., Stanzhevskiy, A. A., Molchanov, O. E., Nikolaev, D. N., Ponezha, T. E., Vinogradova, Yu. N., Ioffe, E. B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Saint-Petersburg Research Institute of Radiation Hygiene after Professor P.V. Ramzaev 14.07.2025
• Subjects: acute radiation syndrome; experimental models; irradiation; laboratory rats; lethality; preclinical study; radiobiology; survival time
• ISSN: 1998-426X; 2409-9082
• DOI: 10.21514/1998-426X-2025-18-2-56-65

The aim of the current study was to create a new and easily reproducible method of modeling acute radiation syndrome, representing the features of the clinical flow of this disease. Materials and Methods: A series of experiments on Wistar rats, both genders (nursery “Rappolovo” (Leningrad region), weight 180–220 g), were performed. Rats were divided into groups and one time exposed at the investigated dose (range of 6–10 Gy) on Elekta Precise accelerator using Solid Water HE (Sun Nuclear) 30×30 cm2 phantom plates. The duration of animal observation was 30 days. Survival, mean lifespan, body weight dynamics, feed and water consumption, state of visible mucous membranes, hair coat and mobility were evaluated. Results and Discussion: The results showed that the proposed model of single exposure of laboratory rats demonstrates a good level of results reproducibility and complies with the basic requirements for experimental models. The lethality of rats within 30 days was 75% with a dose of 8 Gy, the 100% lethality of rats was with a dose of 10 Gy. The results are successfully reproduced in repeated experiments. Conclusion: The obtained data indicated that the proposed model is reliable and can be used for preclinical studies of radioprotectors without existing models’ problem of variability of results.