Course of acute radiation syndrome in whole-body irradiated rats after postirradiation application of different nucleotides

With 144 whole-body irradiated (LD 90/30 to LD 95/30) male Wistar rats (8-10 weeks of age) the effect of postirradiation application of ATP and NADPH on the general condition, survival rate and peripheral blood count was tested. From the circulating blood leukocytes, thrombocytes, erythrocytes and hemoglobin were determined before irradiation and on the 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st day after irradiation. In both cases of application the treatment remained without any effect on the observed general reactions. The chances of survival were significantly increased after therapy with NADPH only. Both adenine nucleotides caused temporarily and to a different extent an accelerated restitution of the peripheral blood picture. This is especially true for reticulocyte and thrombocyte values after the 10th day following irradiation. Time and extent of these positive changes in the blood picture do not suffice for effective repressing of the hemorrhagic diathesis. Erythrocytoses and thrombocytoses which were mainly found in the treated animals on the 3rd day after irradiation might be connected with therapeutic measures and manipulations after irradiation. The observed stimulating influence of the applied nucleotides is thought to be associated with the mechanism of the adenylate cyclase system. (author)