Department of Radiation and Environmental Biology - Overview

Full text:The year 1999 we devoted mainly to the activities concerning our basic research, and requirements and expectations of three research projects. The environmental project from the European Community was supporting our research in the issues of human monitoring of occupational exposure to pesticides. The two other radiobiology projects from the State Committee of Research were supporting our search on the biological efficiency and its enhancement of radio-therapeutic sources of various LET radiation. We succeeded fruitful co-operation with colleagues from Academy of Mining and Metallurgy that let us go faster with modernization of our laboratory by automation of our methods for screening cytogenetic damages. A lot of efforts were paid to modify our work by automatic reports of the coordinates of aberrant metaphases, and to make a smooth work of our new and own metaphase finder. We are sure that our new and unique research tool will not only enhance the accuracy and speed of measurements, but will also be useful for the purpose of the retrospective biological dosimetry of absorbed doses. We have applied fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) for cytogenetic studies of biological effects induced by neutrons. Now, we are looking forward to apply this technique in a combination with the DNA damage measures done by SCGE assay, to our research on mechanisms of the induction and repair, or interaction of the lesions induced by genotoxic agents. Understanding of the regulation of these processes could be a good goal for the new century to come. (author)