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Research Paper | Biology | India | Volume 12 Issue 11, November 2023 | Rating: 5.2 / 10
The Effects of Radiation on the Development and Survival of a Cell
Yuvraj Gupta
Abstract: Radiation is a naturally occurring phenomenon. Energy is emitted by air, water, sun and soil. This energy moves in the forms of an electromagnetic wave and can affect human cells and tissues. But since this radiation is non-ionizing, it does not produce haphazard to the cells. On the other hand, the decay of radioactive atoms releases powerful energy, a form of ionizing radiation, which is very harmful to the cells. Other sources of ionizing radiation are man-made, for example, X-rays, gamma radiation, nuclear reactors and radiopharmaceuticals. Radiation can damage the DNA sequence and result in the collapse of the cell structure. Radiation, in general, is harmful to those cells only that are reproducing and differentiating. It does not affect the dormant cells. Ionizing radiation is very harmful to the developing embryo as the embryonic cells are constantly developing, regenerating and differentiating. Excessive exposure to radiation may lead to carcinogens in the body. Radiation can cause so much damage to the DNA that this malfunctioning is carried in the future genes, leading to genetic disorders. Radiation has such a penetrative power that it can damage the single strand bond and the double strand bonds in the DNA of the cell structure. Although radiation is harmful to us, it has a positive side also. Through the use of MRI, CT scans, IMRT and X-rays the radiologists can visualize the damage to the DNA, and by using a beam of x-rays, gamma, or beta radiation, kill the damaged cell. Radio imaging has given us chances to heal without resorting to conventional surgeries or chemotherapies. Today ionizing radiation is used extensively in the treatment of various cancers and brain tumors. Radiopharmaceuticals, such as Technetium-99m, Iodine-131, Cesium-137, Fluorine-18 etc. belong to types of radioactive agents generally used for either diagnostic or therapeutic interventions. They can be administered both internally and externally to the human cells. There are a number of drawbacks in radiotherapy as it is expensive, time consuming and not fool proof. Moreover, there are a number of side effects seen on the patients that can also be recurring in nature. This therapy can cause infertility in men and women as the beams cannot always focus on a particular cell; the adjacent cells are also killed by the beam. FDA has set a number of regulations before radio-oncologist practices this therapy on a patient. if the radiation exceeds the threshold of 2000 rad, it leads to death inevitably. Although there are a number of drawbacks in the use of radiation therapy, there is no doubt in saying that the future of radiotherapy promises foolproof results as these techniques are getting better with recent innovations in the field of biochemistry.
Keywords: Radiation, Ionizing radiation, DNA damage, Radiotherapy, Radiopharmaceuticals
Edition: Volume 12 Issue 11, November 2023,
Pages: 1509 - 1514