Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 1, 2026
04:36
Production of Synthetic Nuclear Melt Glass
Published on: January 4, 2016
The Chernobyl accident and its consequences: update at the millennium.
1Endocrinology Service, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, NY 10021, USA.
Seminars in Nuclear Medicine
|April 29, 2000
Summary
The Chernobyl disaster led to increased childhood papillary thyroid cancer due to radioactive iodine exposure. Research is identifying unique genetic changes in these radiation-induced thyroid cancers.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Radiation Biology
- Molecular Genetics
Background:
- The Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident in 1986 caused significant radioactive fallout in surrounding regions.
- A marked increase in childhood papillary thyroid cancer incidence has been observed in contaminated areas.
- Radioactive iodine accumulation led to high radiation doses in the thyroid gland.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate chromosomal abnormalities in Chernobyl-associated thyroid cancers.
- To identify potential molecular markers specific to radiation-induced thyroid cancer.
- To compare genetic alterations in Chernobyl-associated thyroid cancers with spontaneously occurring ones.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of Chernobyl-associated thyroid cancers using modern molecular biology techniques.
- Detection of chromosomal abnormalities and unique breakpoints.
- Investigation of ret/PTC tyrosine kinase oncogene activation.
Main Results:
- While stable chromosomal abnormalities are less prevalent than in externally irradiated thyroid cancers, unique breakpoints are found in Chernobyl-associated cases.
- Specific subtypes of the ret/PTC tyrosine kinase oncogene are more frequently activated in radiation-associated thyroid cancers.
- These findings suggest distinct molecular signatures for radiation-induced thyroid cancer.
Conclusions:
- Thyroid cancers following the Chernobyl accident offer a unique model for studying radiation-induced carcinogenesis.
- Unique chromosomal alterations and oncogene activations may serve as biomarkers for radiation-induced thyroid cancer.
- Further research can elucidate the specific mechanisms of radiation-induced thyroid tumorigenesis.
More Related Videos
09:18Laser-heating and Radiance Spectrometry for the Study of Nuclear Materials in Conditions Simulating a Nuclear Power Plant Accident
Published on: December 14, 2017
07:52A Novel Technique for Raman Analysis of Highly Radioactive Samples Using Any Standard Micro-Raman Spectrometer
Published on: April 12, 2017
Related Concept Videos
03:18Radioactivity and Nuclear Equations
Nuclear chemistry is the study of reactions that involve changes in nuclear structure. The nucleus of an atom is composed of protons and, except for hydrogen, neutrons. The number of protons in the nucleus is called the atomic number (Z) of the element, and the sum of the number of protons and the number of neutrons is the mass number (A). Atoms with the same atomic number but different mass numbers are isotopes of the same element.
A nuclide of an element has a specific number of protons and...
A nuclide of an element has a specific number of protons and...
03:18Nuclear Stability
Protons and neutrons, collectively called nucleons, are packed together tightly in a nucleus. With a radius of about 10−15 meters, a nucleus is quite small compared to the radius of the entire atom, which is about 10−10 meters. Nuclei are extremely dense compared to bulk matter, averaging 1.8 × 1014 grams per cubic centimeter. If the earth’s density were equal to the average nuclear density, the earth’s radius would be only about 200 meters.
To hold positively charged protons together in the...
To hold positively charged protons together in the...
02:50Nuclear Fission
Many heavier elements with smaller binding energies per nucleon can decompose into more stable elements that have intermediate mass numbers and larger binding energies per nucleon—that is, mass numbers and binding energies per nucleon that are closer to the “peak” of the binding energy graph near 56. Sometimes neutrons are also produced. This decomposition of a large nucleus into smaller pieces is called fission. The breaking is rather random with the formation of a large number of different...
02:36Nuclear Power
Controlled nuclear fission reactions are used to generate electricity. Any nuclear reactor that produces power via the fission of uranium or plutonium by bombardment with neutrons has six components: nuclear fuel consisting of fissionable material, a nuclear moderator, a neutron source, control rods, reactor coolant, and a shield and containment system.
Nuclear Fuels
Nuclear fuel consists of a fissile isotope, such as uranium-235, which must be present in sufficient quantity to provide a...
Nuclear Fuels
Nuclear fuel consists of a fissile isotope, such as uranium-235, which must be present in sufficient quantity to provide a...
03:20Nuclear Transmutation
Nuclear transmutation is the conversion of one nuclide into another. It can occur by the radioactive decay of a nucleus, or the reaction of a nucleus with another particle. The first manmade nucleus was produced in Ernest Rutherford’s laboratory in 1919 by a transmutation reaction, the bombardment of one type of nuclei with other nuclei or with neutrons. Rutherford bombarded nitrogen-14 atoms with high-speed α particles from a natural radioactive isotope of radium and observed protons being...
02:59Biological Effects of Radiation
All radioactive nuclides emit high-energy particles or electromagnetic waves. When this radiation encounters living cells, it can cause heating, break chemical bonds, or ionize molecules. The most serious biological damage results when these radioactive emissions fragment or ionize molecules. For example, α and β particles emitted from nuclear decay reactions possess much higher energies than ordinary chemical bond energies. When these particles strike and penetrate matter, they produce ions...