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Biological chemistry

Beyond radical thinking

Nature volume 461, pages 358–359 (2009)Cite this article

Radiation-induced DNA damage has been attributed to hydroxyl radicals, which form when water absorbs high-energy photons or charged particles. But another product of water's radiolysis might be the real culprit.

When high-energy radiation — X-rays, γ-rays and fast-moving charged particles such as ions, electrons and protons — interacts with DNA inside living cells, it can cause damage to the genome that leads to cell death1. For this reason, such radiation is used in radiotherapy to destroy cancer cells. Unfortunately, radiation damage can itself initiate the development of cancer cells1. To improve radiotherapy, it is therefore desirable to control more precisely the cell damage caused by radiation, while minimizing potentially harmful mutagenic effects. This requires greater understanding of the molecular processes involved.

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Figure 1: Radiation damage in DNA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Léon Sanche is at the Center for Radiobiology and Radiotherapy Research, Faculté de Médicine, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Québec J1H 5N4, Canada. leon.sanche@usherbrooke.ca ,

    Léon Sanche

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  1. Léon Sanche
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Sanche, L. Beyond radical thinking. Nature 461, 358–359 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/461358a

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