Neulasta Regimen for the Hematopoietic Acute Radiation Syndrome: Effects Beyond Neutrophil Recovery

Understanding the physiopathology underlying the acute radiation syndrome (ARS) and the mechanism of action of drugs known to ameliorate ARS is expected to help identify novel countermeasure candidates and improve the outcome for victims exposed to radiation. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of hematopoietic ARS (H-ARS) because of its ability to alleviate myelosuppression. Besides its role in hematopoiesis, G-CSF is known to protect the cardiovascular and neurologic systems, to attenuate vascular injury and cardiac toxicity, to preserve gap junction function, and to modulate inflammation and oxidative stress. Here, we characterized the protective effects of G-CSF beyond neutrophil recovery in minipigs exposed to H-ARS doses.