Cell Responses to RT Flashcards
How to get plating efficiency?
Plate cells and do not radiate them (control).
The colony # that form gives you the plating efficiency!
Formula to calculate surviving fraction (SF)?
Colonies counter / (cells plated x plating efficiency)
What are the axes for L-Q survival curves plots?
log of SF against linear dose!
For a L-Q cell survival curve, is the shoulder the linear or the quadratic part?
It is the linear part! it is directly proportional to D.
This is counter intuitive but it is so because we plot log of the surviving fraction!
For a linear-quadratic (LQ) cell survival curve, is the “straight” slope the linear or the quadratic part?
It is the quadratic part! It is directly proportional to D2
This is counter intuitive but it is so because we plot log of the surviving fraction!
What is the α/β ratio?
It is the dose in Gy at which the linear and quadratic components of cell killing are equal.
For high LET radiation (neutrons, α particles), which part of the cell survival curve fraction (α or β) is predominant?
It is almost 90-99% α!
What is the other popular model of cell survival?
The target theory model developed by Puck and Markus.
What is Do?
It comes from the Puck and Markus model of cell survival curve.
It is the dose at which the surviving fraction is reduced to 37%.
Conceptually, it is the dose to hit each cell in the culture one time.
Why was 37% chosen as the surviving fraction for D0?
Because ln(0.37) = 1.
It makes calculations easier
Is Do the same at any portion of the cell survival curve?
Yes, as long as you are on the slope (NOT the shoulder) of the curve.
What is D1 ?
It is the initial slope, due to single event killing, the dose to reduce survival to 37%
What is Dq (quasithrehold dose)?
You extend the straight portion of the curve back towards the y axis.
Where this line crosses SF 1 on y-axis, you get Dq from the x-axis.
Where this line intersects the y axis, that value gives you the n. n is a surrogate for how big the shoulder of the curve is.
How do we define cell death in radiation?
Loss of reproductive ability
aka senescence
What is the single-hit, single-target model?
Observed biological effect results from a single energy deposit. There is no shoulder to this curve!
It only occurs in three scenarios:
- high-LET radiation (alpha, neutrons)
- cells are in the M phase
- cells have a defect in their DNA repair
What is the single-hit, multi-target model?
A cell has multiple targets that need to be hit for it to be killed. All must be hit before the cell dies!
What are the assumptions of the target theory model?
- Ionizations near molecules cause structural changes (in DNA)
- There is a mathematical relationship between dose and effect
- Each ionization event is random (Poisson distribution)
Between the L-Q and the target theory cell survival models, which one is the most accurate?
L-Q!
These curves are usually identical. It’s how we think about them that differs.
The T-T model was developed for a single-cell type. Thus, it works better for single-cell types or cells in culture.
In practice, for tissues with multiple cell types, the L-Q model is much more accurate.
For two given Do, which cell line is more radiosensitive?
The one with the lower Do
For a given set of n values from target theory model, which one is likely to belong to a radiation with high LET?
n = 1
What kind of damage is represented by α and β?
α represents non-repairable damage. A single hit with high LET radiation does all the damage required to kill.
β represents repairable damage. Such damage usually requires two hits from two different radiation tracks separated by time. The damage may be repaired during this time!
Why do we fractionate radiation instead of giving it as a single dose?
This allows for much more normal tissue sparing than if we were to give it as a single dose.
Does apoptosis cause inflammation?
No, no cell contents are spilled out. Therefore, there is no inflammation.
What is a mitotic catastrophe?
This happens when the DNA is damaged to the point that when the cell goes to divide, it cannot and must die off. It usually occurs after one or a few abortive mitotic cycles.
The cell remains active until it goes to divide.
What is necroptosis?
It is a programmed (regulated) form of necrosis and inflammatory cell death. It is caspase-independent and often used as a defense mechanism (suicide) against viruses.
What proteins (kinases, etc) are involved in necroptosis signaling?
- RIP-1 → RIP-3 activation
- RIP3 → MLKL activation (trimer formation)
- Plasma membrane permeabilization
Mnemonic: RIP MLK
What is pyroptosis?
It is an inflammatory form of apoptosis associated with the antimicrobial response. it requires induction of caspase-1 by pyroptosome.
It involves membrane rupture and the release of damage-associated molecular pattern molecules (DAMP).
What are some initial changes to a cellular membrane that are observed during apoptosis?
Phospholipid phosphatidylserine translocates to the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane.
What is the hallmark feature of apoptosis?
Formation of apoptosis blebs.
How is apoptosis observed on Agarose gel electrophoresis?
DNA laddering.
This happens because DNA breakdown happens in a very orderly fashion, generally around nucleosomes.
it fragments the DNA in multiples of 185 bp fragments (May contain 1, 2, 3, or more of these 185 bp units)
Does the cell shrink or swell up in apoptosis?
Shrinks
Does the cell swell or shrink during necrosis?
Swell
What are the most common pro-apoptotic proteins?
Bax, Noxa, Bid, Puma
Bid goodbye
What are the most common pro-survival proteins?
Bcl-2, Bcl-XL
What is the DNA domain difference between pro-survival and pro-apoptotic proteins?
The BH4 domain
What role does p53 protein play in apoptosis?
It turns on Puma, Noxa, and Bax
What is the importance of apoptosis in different cancers?
Lymphomas > Carcinomas > Sarcomas (NO apoptosis)
What are the steps involved in the extrinsic apoptosis pathway?
- TNFR, TRAIL, and/or Fas are activated by TNF, TRAIL R1/R2, and Fas ligands respectively.
- These activate caspase 8 (extrinsic pathway initiator caspase)
- This rapidly activates killer caspases 1, 3, 4, 6, and 7 (effector caspases)
- This sets into motion a cascade of protease events that result in cell death.
Mnemonic: EXtrinsic → Eight, X (ten)
What are the steps involved in the intrinsic apoptosis pathway?
- ATM senses DNA damage and activates p53.
- p53 activates Bax/Bak/Bad and other pro-apoptotic proteins.
- Proteins cause mitochondria to leak cytochrome c
- Cytochrome c activates caspase 9 (intrinsic pathway initiator caspase)
- This rapidly activates killer caspases 1, 3, 4, 6, and 7 (effector caspases)
- This sets into motion a cascade of protease events that result in cell death.
Mnemonic: INTrinsic → nINe, Two
What type of cell death involves the release of cytochrome-C from mitochondria?
Apoptosis
Where do endonucleases cut DNA?
Within the DNA.
Where do exonucleases cut DNA?
At the ends of the DNA.
What is the bp difference between different rungs of the apoptosis DNA ladder on gel electrophoresis?
185 bp
What kind of DNA fragmentation is seen on Agarose gel electrophoresis in necrosis?
No patterns. Just a smear of DNA from one end to the other 2/2 random nature of DNA degradation.
What is an annexin assay?
It is an assay for detecting apoptosis.
It detects phosphatidylserine on cell surfaces as they undergo apoptosis.
What sort of genetic changes cause intrinsic radioresistance?
- Raf overexpression
- N-, H-, and K-ras point mutations
- Bcl2 overexpression
- Her2/neu overexpression
What is the role of Bcl2 overexpression in apoptosis control?
Overexpression leads to radioresistance as it is a pro-survival (NOT pro-apoptotic protein).
What is the number of tumor cells and doublings in 1g of tumor?
- 109 cells
- 30 doublings
What is the formula for tumor control probability?
P = e-n
What is TD50?
Tumor Dilution 50%
Number of tumor cells required to induce a tumor in 50% of recipient mice
What is TCD50?
Tumor Control Dose 50%.
The dose required to control 50% of tumors.
How many cells/tumor would be left by TCD37?
1 cell per tumor
This translates into a tumor control probability of 0.37 (37%)
How is cell survival related to TCD?
Survival = 1 - TCD
How many cells/tumor would be left by TCD90?
0.1
Or in 100 treated patients, only 10 tumor cell is left behind.
How many cells/tumor would be left by TCD95?
0.05
Or 5 in 100 tumor cells
How many cells/tumor would be left by TCD99?
0.01
Or in 100 treated patients, only 1 tumor cell is left behind.
What are giant cells?
They are huge cells with multiple nuclei.
They represent cells undergoing mitotic catastrophe after the formation of chromosome aberrations.