Intestinal microbiota as novel biomarkers of prior radiation exposure. Radiat Res 2012 May;177(5):573-83
Date
03/24/2012Pubmed ID
22439602DOI
10.1667/rr2691.1Scopus ID
2-s2.0-84861374205 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 63 CitationsAbstract
There is an urgent need for rapid, accurate, and sensitive diagnostic platforms to confirm exposure to radiation and estimate the dose absorbed by individuals subjected to acts of radiological terrorism, nuclear power plant accidents, or nuclear warfare. Clinical symptoms and physical dosimeters, even when available, do not provide adequate diagnostic information to triage and treat life-threatening radiation injuries. We hypothesized that intestinal microbiota act as novel biomarkers of prior radiation exposure. Adult male Wistar rats (n = 5/group) received single or multiple fraction total-body irradiation of 10.0 Gy and 18.0 Gy, respectively. Fresh fecal pellets were obtained from each rat prior to (day 0) and at days 4, 11, and 21 post-irradiation. Fecal microbiota composition was determined using microarray and quantitative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) analyses. The radiation exposure biomarkers consisted of increased 16S rRNA levels of 12 members of the Bacteroidales, Lactobacillaceae, and Streptococcaceae after radiation exposure, unchanged levels of 98 Clostridiaceae and Peptostreptococcaceae, and decreased levels of 47 separate Clostridiaceae members; these biomarkers are present in human and rat feces. As a result of the ubiquity of these biomarkers, this biomarker technique is non-invasive; microbiota provide a sustained level of reporting signals that are increased several-fold following exposure to radiation, and intestinal microbiota that are unaffected by radiation serve as internal controls. We conclude that intestinal microbiota serve as novel biomarkers of prior radiation exposure, and may be able to complement conventional chromosome aberrational analysis to significantly enhance biological dose assessments.
Author List
Lam V, Moulder JE, Salzman NH, Dubinsky EA, Andersen GL, Baker JEAuthors
John E. Baker PhD Professor in the Surgery department at Medical College of WisconsinNita H. Salzman MD, PhD Director, Professor in the Pediatrics department at Medical College of Wisconsin
MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
Animal FeedAnimals
Bacteria
Bacterial Load
Biological Assay
Biomarkers
DNA, Bacterial
Feces
Gene Expression Profiling
Humans
Intestines
Male
Metagenome
Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis
Radiation Dosage
Radiation Tolerance
Radiometry
Random Allocation
Rats
Rats, Inbred Dahl
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Rats, Wistar
Ribotyping
Species Specificity
Whole-Body Irradiation
