A novel focal duodenal radiation injury model reveals dose-, time-, and spatially-dependent microbiome perturbations after radiation injury
The duodenum is a key organ at risk during stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR). Understanding mechanisms of radiation-induced intestinal injury (RIII) could reveal novel strategies to reduce SABR toxicities. The gut microbiome contributes to RIII, however existing preclinical models either require surgical manipulation or fail to recapitulate high-dose conformal treatment fields used during SABR, confounding microbiome studies. We developed a non-invasive focal bowel irradiation model to assess microbiome dynamics in both the duodenum and the stool after high-dose duodenal irradiation.