AbstractThe potentially specific importance of the heavy ions of the galactic cosmic radiation for radiation protection in manned spaceflight continues to stimulate in situ, i.e., spaceflight experiments to investigate their radiobiological properties. Chromosome aberrations as an expression of a direct assault on the genome are of particular interest in view of cancerogenesis being the primary radiation risk for man in space. In such investigations the establishment of the geometrical correlation between heavy ions' trajectories and the location of radiation sensitive biological substructures is an essential task. The overall qualitative and quantitative precision achieved for the identification of particle trajectories in the order of 2~10 μm as well as the contributing sources of uncertainties are discussed. We describe how this was achieved for seeds of Lactuca sativa as biological test organisms, whose location and orientation had to be derived from contact photographies displaying their outlines and those of the holder plates only. The incidence of chromosome aberrations in cells exposed during the COSMOS 1887 (Biosatellite 8) and the COSMOS 2044 (Biosatellite 9) mission was determined for seeds hit by cosmic heavy ions. In those seeds the incidence of both single and multiple chromosome aberrations was enhanced. The results of the Biosatellite 9 experiment, however, are confounded by spaceflight effects unrelated to the passage of heavy ions.


    Access

    Check access

    Check availability in my library

    Order at Subito €


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    Particle trajectories in seeds of Lactuca sativa and chromosome aberrations after exposure to cosmic heavy ions on cosmos biosatellites 8 and 9


    Contributors:
    Facius, R. (author) / Scherer, K. (author) / Reitz, G. (author) / Bücker, H. (author) / Nevzgodina, L.V. (author) / Maximova, E.N. (author)

    Published in:

    Advances in Space Research ; 14 , 10 ; 93-103


    Publication date :

    1994-01-01


    Size :

    11 pages




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English




    Results of immunological experiments aboard the Cosmos biosatellites and problems in space immunology

    Konstantinova, I. V. / Sonnenfeld, G. / Schaffar, L. et al. | NTRS | 1992


    Induction of chromosome aberrations in mammalian cells after heavy ion exposure

    Ritter, S. / Kraft-Weyrather, W. / Scholz, M. et al. | Elsevier | 1991


    Detection of heavy cosmic rays aboard Cosmos-936

    Tripier, J. / Debeauvais, M. | Tema Archive | 1980


    Chromosome aberrations in astronauts

    George, K. / Durante, M. / Cucinotta, F.A. | Elsevier | 2007