BioOne.org will be down briefly for maintenance on 17 December 2024 between 18:00-22:00 Pacific Time US. We apologize for any inconvenience.
How to translate text using browser tools
22 May 2023 Of Men and Mice: Using Terrestrial Radiation Epidemiology Methods to Inform Analysis of Animal Models for Space Radiation Risk Assessment
Lori J. Chappell, Katherine M. Rahill, S. Robin Elgart
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

Prediction of cancer risk from space radiation exposure is critical to ensure spaceflight crewmembers are adequately informed of the risks they face when accepting assignments to ambitious long-duration exploratory missions. Although epidemiological studies have assessed the effects of exposure to terrestrial radiation, no robust epidemiological studies of humans exposed to space radiation exist to support estimates of the risk from space radiation exposure. Mouse data derived from recent irradiation experiments provides valuable information to successfully develop mouse-based excess risks models for assessing relative biological effectiveness for heavy ions that can provide information to scale unique space radiation exposures so that excess risks estimated for terrestrial radiation can be adjusted for space radiation risk assessment. Bayesian analyses were used to simulate linear slopes for excess risk models with several different effect modifiers for attained age and sex. Relative biological effectiveness values for all-solid cancer mortality were calculated from the ratio of the heavy-ion linear slope to the gamma linear slope using the full posterior distribution and resulted in values that were substantially lower than what is currently applied in risk assessment. These analyses provide an opportunity to improve characterization of parameters used in the current NASA Space Cancer Risk (NSCR) model and generate new hypotheses for future animal experiments using out-bred mouse populations.

Lori J. Chappell, Katherine M. Rahill, and S. Robin Elgart "Of Men and Mice: Using Terrestrial Radiation Epidemiology Methods to Inform Analysis of Animal Models for Space Radiation Risk Assessment," Radiation Research 200(2), 116-126, (22 May 2023). https://doi.org/10.1667/RADE-22-00176.1
Received: 6 October 2022; Accepted: 27 April 2023; Published: 22 May 2023
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top