The effect of sensitizers on inactivation and mutation induction by gamma radiation in Escherichia coli.

Abstract

The introduction includes a review of the current knowledge of the cellular effects of ionizing radiation and the role of sensitizers in modifying these effects. The experimental part, the broad aim of which is to gain an insight into the mechanism of ionizing radiation induced inactivation and mutagenesis, is divided into three parts. The first part is concerned with the study of the oxygen enhancement of gamma inactivation in the double mutant Escherichia coli K-12 AB 2480 uvr A rec A, and the evaluation of the role of superoxide dismutase enzyme and sulphydryl groups in this process. In the second part, the effect of three classes of sensitizers, the nitroxyl compounds TAN and TMPN, the electron affinic compounds PNAP and misoni-dazole and the sulphydryl binding agent NEM on the inactivation of Escherichia coli K-12 AB1886 uvr A by gamma radiation was studied. The final part comprises a comparative study of the mutational response of ABl886 following gamma irradiation in the presence of sensitizers. The data obtained in each part have been discussed in the context of the current concepts and in comparison with the published work.

Date of Award	1983
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bath