Hit-size effectiveness theory applied to high doses of low LET radiation for pink mutations in Tradescantia

A hit-size effectiveness function which represents the probability of inducing a pink mutation in Tradescantia as a function of lineal energy density has been obtained (1) using observed pink mutation data for seven different radiation qualities and their respective single event microdosimetric spectra. In obtaining this function only the linear portions of dose-response curves were used. A significant improvement of the concepts embodied in the proposed hit-size effectiveness theory would be the demonstration of its applicability at high doses (where multiple hits are produced) and high dose rates (at which no significant biological repair takes place). In this article details are given on preliminary calculations of the pink mutation frequency in Tradescantia at 1, 5, 10, 20, and 60 rads for 250 kVp x rays, using the multi-hit spectra and the hit-size effectiveness function obtained on the basis of single hit microdosimetric spectra as outline in (1). A comparison of the calculated and observed pink mutation frequencies indicate excellent agreement and suggests the possibility of obtaining the hit-size effectiveness function from high dose biological-effect data obtained using low-LET radiations. 6 refs., 3 figs., 3 tabs