Altered activity of respiratory chain enzymes in mitochondria of peripheral blood lymphocytes after irradiation in rats

The effect of ionizing radiation on the activity of succinate dehydrogenase (complex II) and succinate-cytochrome C-oxidoreductase in peripheral blood lymphocytes is studied on rats exposed to whole-body γ-irradiation in doses of 9.5–10.5 Gy. On day 5 after irradiation, when the number of lymphocytes is sharply reduced, enzyme activity in the remaining population is found to be reliably increased. These changes are not related to biological cycles. It is assumed that most of the survivors after high-dose irradiation are the cell populations maintaining a high level of oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria. Translated fromByulleten' Eksperimental'noi Giologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 120, N ^o . 8, pp. 158–159, August, 1995 Presented by D. S. Sarkisov, Member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences