title: Chromosomal radiosensitivity: a study of the chromosomal G(2) assay in human blood lymphocytes indicating significant inter-individual variability.
abstract: The G(2) chromosomal radiosensitivity assay is a technically demanding assay. To ensure that it is reproducible in our laboratory, we have examined the effects of storage and culture conditions by applying the assay to a group of healthy controls and determined the extent of intra- and inter-individual variations. Nineteen different individuals provided one or more blood samples resulting in a total of 57 successful tests. Multiple cultures from a single blood sample showed no statistically significant difference in the number of chromatid type aberrations between cultures. A 24h delay prior to culturing the lymphocytes did not significantly affect the induced G(2) score. Intra-individual variation was not statistically significant in seven out of nine individuals. Inter-individual variation was highly statistically significant (P<0.001), indicating that there is a real difference between individuals in the response to radiation using this assay.
authors.affiliation: Genetics Unit, Westlakes Research Institute, Moor Row, CA24 3JY Cumbria, UK. valerie.smart@westlakes.ac.uk
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Smart
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Curwen
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Whitehouse
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Tawn
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D002875:Chromosomes / Q000528:radiation effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests / Q000592:standards*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results