Abstract
We have reported that low-dose irradiation enhanced the immune and antioxidation function and reduced the oxidative damage by the immuno-assay and bio-assay. In the present study we examined the histological changes of low-dose X-ray irradiation on spleen, ovary and liver in mouse. Female BALB/c mice, 7 weeks of age, were irradiated by sham, 0.25 Gy, 0.5 Gy, or 15 Gy (reference) of X-ray. Each mouse was killed at 4 hrs, 24 hrs, or 48 hrs after irradiation. Paraffin sections of those organs were stained with hematoxylin-eosin. In the results, the histological examinations of spleen sections revealed that at 4 hrs after 0.25Gy irradiation and at 24 and 48 hrs after 0.5Gy irradiation, lymphatic follicles (white pulp) were larger than those of sham irradiation, and that at 24 and 48 hrs after 15Gy irradiation, lymphatic follicles decreased sharply. In granulose cells and stromal cells of the ovary, apoptosis was induced at 4, 24 or 48 hrs after each irradiation. In the liver, there were no differences among each irradiation. These findings suggested that the lymphocytes in the spleen were increased by 0.25Gy or 0.5Gy irradiation, and such low dose irradiation enhances immune function. This study is required to evaluate the cytoarchitecture of T cells and B cells in spleen, thymus and bone marrow. We will also report the results.
