Proteins increase resistance to lethal doses of radioactive radiation
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Proteins that prevent blood clotting, increase the body's resistance to lethal doses of radioactive radiation.
Last year's incident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant again forced to address the problem of protection from radioactive radiation. It is believed that high doses of radiation act on the body quickly and irreversibly, damaging primarily the bone marrow and intestines. As a result, the number of blood cells drops sharply, as a consequence - immunity stops and the body becomes an easy prey, even for the weakest pathogens. The main aid in this case is the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, a protein that stimulates the formation of new blood cells. But, firstly, it is very demanding for storage, secondly, it needs to be introduced as soon as possible after irradiation, and thirdly, its application is sometimes accompanied by side effects.
Last fall, scientists from Harvard (USA) managed to find a remedy (a mixture of immune bactericidal protein and antibiotic), which stabilized the condition of irradiated animals and increased survival even after exceptionally high radiation doses. Their colleagues at the University of Cincinnati and the Blood Research Institute in Wisconsin (both USA) tell the Nature Medicine magazine about a mixture of proteins with a similar effect: the blood protein thrombomodulin and activated protein C (xigris) increased survival of irradiated mice by 40-80%.
To the discovery, scientists came, studying mutant mice that were resistant to radiation. It turned out that they have increased the synthesis of thrombomodulin - an anti-coagulant protein, which prevents too active clotting of blood. Thrombomodulin activates protein C, which also limits coagulation. Activated protein C has already been tried as an anti-inflammatory drug, but subsequently abandoned this idea due to the low effectiveness of the commercial drug. Now, apparently, this protein will have a second chance. Scientists irradiated about fifty mice radiation dose of 9.5 Gy and after 24 or 48 hours, some of the experimental animals were injected with activated protein C. A month later, of those to whom the protein was not administered, only a third survived, whereas injection of protein C increased survival to 70% . Thrombomodulin had a similar effect, but for this it had to be administered in the first half hour after irradiation.
Researchers do not doubt that both proteins will replenish the arsenal of anti-radiation protection. In their favor, says that at least one of them can work even after a considerable time after irradiation. In this case, both thrombomodulin and protein C have already participated in clinical trials, that is, their interaction with the human body should not bring any surprises.
To achieve the greatest effect, it is obviously necessary to introduce both proteins, since, in addition to the external protein C, its internal reserves with thrombomodulin could also be activated. However, over deciphering the mechanism of their action (why suddenly squirrels-anticoagulants are good against radiation?) Scientists still have to work ...
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