Environmental Health Perspectives 105, Supplement 6, December 1997

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Assessment of the Action of Mixed Irradiation

Shozo Suzuki

Department of Biochemistry and Isotopes, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan

Abstract
Problems associated with the environmental and health perspectives of mixed irradiation are identified and the application of theoretical models is discussed. Four definitions of synergism were examined with regard to the action of mixed irradiation, and it was determined that all these definitions are inappropriate. Thus, I concluded that the term synergism or its synonym should not be used for the action of mixed irradiation unless a reasonable definition and evidence of the mechanism are provided. The Zaider-Rossi model and the extended Zaider-Rossi model, which can be applied to any type of mixed irradiation with two types of radiation, are useful for assessing the effects of mixed irradiation using the parameters for two types of single irradiation. Furthermore, models were proposed for very short and very long simultaneous mixed irradiation with multiple types of radiation. These models also would be helpful to assess the environmental and health perspectives of mixed irradiation. -- Environ Health Perspect 105(Suppl 6):1455-1458 (1997)

Key words: mixed irradiation, synergism, synergistic, low dose rate, theoretical model, high linear energy transfer

This paper is based on a presentation at the International Conference on Radiation and Health held 3-7 November 1996 in Beer Sheva, Israel. Abstracts of these papers were previously published in Public Health Reviews 24(3-4):205-431 (1996). Manuscript received at EHP 28 February 1997; accepted 25 July 1997.

Address correspondence to Dr. S. Suzuki, Department of Biochemistry and Isotopes, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Sakaecho 35-2, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-0015, Japan. Telephone: 81 3 3964 3241 ext.3142. Fax: 81 3 3579 4776. E-mail: shozo@tmig.or.jp

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