[Radiation and apoptosis].
Apoptosis is a kind of programmed cell death, that is, intrinsically programmed "cell suicide process". Mammalian thymic lymphocytes, thymocytes, show a typical apoptosis immediately after a low dose irradiation. Apoptosis appears also during radiotherapy of tumor, especially of thymoma. Tumor suppressor gene such as p53 and oncogene such as bcl-2 are found to be closely related to apoptotic processes in a cell. Possible mechanisms underlying interrelationship between expression of these genes, apoptosis and carcinogenesis were discussed.
Yamada
T
T
Dept. of Biology, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Ohyama
H
H
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000528:radiation effects*; D002455:Cell Division; D016158:Genes, p53; D006801:Humans; D015458:Leukemia, T-Cell / Q000473:pathology; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000528:radiation effects; D009857:Oncogenes; D013945:Thymoma / Q000532:radiotherapy; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000166:cytology / Q000528:radiation effects; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy