Radiation dose patterns in beagle dogs following inhalation of monodisperse and polydisperse aerosols of 238PuO2

Radiation dose patterns are being determined in Beagle dogs after inhalation of different sizes of monodisperse or a polydisperse aerosol of 238PuO2. Aerosol sizes employed in the study were 0.7, 1.4, 2.7 μm aerodynamic diameter (AD) monodisperse aerosols and a 1.4 μm activity median aerodynamic diameter (AMAD) polydisperse aerosol. Twenty-six Beagle dogs were exposed to achieve initial lung burdens ofapproximately equal to 0.07 μCi/kg for each aerosol form and are being serially sacrificed in groups of two animals at 4 hr, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 356, 730 days, 4, 6 and 8 yr after inhalation exposure. Since the study has been in progress only a short time, only limited data are available at this time. The primary purpose of the study is to provide information on the radiation dose distribution to organs and tissues of the Beagle dog as a function of particle size. These data will be of great value in interpreting dose-response relationships following inhalation of different sized aerosols of 238PuO2 observed in other studies at this laboratory