Response of cultured IEC-17 normal rat intestinal epithelial cells to x radiation

The growth parameters and radiosensitivity of normal rat intestinal epithelial cells, IEC-17, were studied. The cells were cultured by standard methods and exposed to an array of doses (1-12 Gy) of 250 kVp X rays. The survival curves generated exhibited no initial shoulder and were bimodal. The D0 of the first component was about 0.2 Gy and the second component, 5.0 Gy. The ability of this cell line to repair sublethal lesions was examined by fractionation studies; repair was completed within 60 min after the first dose. The survival curves obtained for the IEC-17 cell line are consistent with the response of a morphologically distinct single population containing two functionally separate types of cells