Abstract
MANY investigators have found1–4 that the rat, unlike the mouse, is afforded little or no protection to irradiation damage by the prior administration of cyanide salts. In all their experiments, a limited dose-range of cyanide was tested. The frequently cited results of Dowdy et al.1, for example, were obtained using a single dose (3 mg/kg) of sodium cyanide. A recent theory5 states that compounds such as cyanide and azide owe their radiobiological action to the property of stabilization of cuprous (Cu I) ion involved in oxidative processes. The proposal suggests that the dose required to achieve protection would be sharply defined and, if not limited by chemical toxicity of cyanide, it should be possible to demonstrate protection in the rat using the proper dose. Accordingly, survival was compared in rats and mice given a wide range of doses of sodium cyanide prior to X-irradiation.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Dowdy, A. H., Bennett, L. R., and Chastain, S. M., Radiology, 55, 879 (1950).
Patt, H. M., Physiol. Rev., 33, 35 (1953).
Yakovlev, V. G., and Ivanov, I. I., Meditsinskaii Radiologia, 3, 14 (1958).
Bacq, Z. M., and Alexander, P., Fundamentals of Radiobiology (Pergamon Press, New York, 1961).
Schubert, J., Rad. Res., 14, 499 (1961).
Sollman, T., A Manual of Pharmacology (W. B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, 1957).
Hogeboom, G. H., and Schneider, W. C., J. Biol. Chem., 194, 513 (1952).
Felsenfeld, G., Arch. Biochem. and Biophys., 87, 247 (1960).
Needham, A. E., Nature, 189, 308 (1961).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
SCHUBERT, J., MARKLEY, J. Radiation Protection by Cyanide of both Rats and Mice. Nature 197, 399–400 (1963). https://doi.org/10.1038/197399a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/197399a0
This article is cited by
-
Effect of radiation sickness and radioprotective action of cyanide on cytochrome oxidase activity in epithelium of jejunal villi in mice
Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine (1970)
-
Comparative Radiosensitivity of Animal Organisms and Copper Contents
Nature (1963)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
