Microdistribution of internal radiation dose in biological tissues exposed to ⁵⁶Mn dioxide microparticles

Manganese-56 (⁵⁶Mn) was one of the dominant neutron-activated radionuclides during the first hours following the atomic-bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The radiation spectrum of ⁵⁶Mn and the radiation emission from excited levels of ⁵⁶Fe following ⁵⁶Mn beta-decay include gamma-quanta, beta-particles, Auger electrons and X-rays. The dispersion of neutron activated ⁵⁶Mn in the air can lead to entering of radioactive microparticles into the lungs. The investigation of spatial microdistribution of an internal dose in biological tissue exposed to ⁵⁶Mn is an important matter with regards to the possible elevated irradiation of the lung alveoli and alveolar ducts. The Monte Carlo code (MCNP-4C) was used for the calculation of absorbed doses in biological tissue around ⁵⁶Mn dioxide microparticles. The estimated absorbed dose has a very essential gradient in the epithelium cells of lung alveoli and alveolar duct: from 61 mGy/decay on the surface of simple squamous cells of epithelium to 0.15 mGy/decay at distance of 0.3 μm, which is maximal cell thickness. It has been concluded that epithelial cells of these pulmonary microstructures are selectively irradiated by low-energy electrons: short-range component of beta-particles spectrum and Auger electrons. The data obtained are important for the interpretation of biological experiments implementing dispersed neutron-activated ⁵⁶Mn dioxide powder.