Correlation of Radiation-Induced Ultrastructural Changes in Mouse Hepatocytes with Alterations in Plasma Concentration of Protein-Bound Neutral Hexoses

Mice of strain C₃ H were subjected to a whole-body dose of 530 rads of mixed gamma-neutron radiations delivered at a rate of approximately 20 rads/minute. The blood plasma concentration of protein-bound carbohydrates, as neutral hexoses, was estimated daily after irradiation. Ultrastructural architecture of liver tissue taken from irradiated animals in extremis was compared with that of survivors and fed and starved unirradiated controls. Among the radiation-induced differences observed in the hepatocytes were moderate to marked dilatation of the endoplasmic reticulum, increased Golgi activity, and rounding of the mitochondria with a decrease in numbers of mitochondrial granules. These alterations, together with other differences noted, were correlated with the increased plasma concentration of protein-bound neutral hexoses uniformly found in animals which succumb to radiation injury.