Radioprotective Effects of Amifostine and Lycopene on Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes In Vitro

Radiation protection is a pivotal challenge for radiation workers employed in medical fields, industry, and also space professionals with an increasing role in medical diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Radioprotective effects of amifostine and lycopene and their ability to moderate the level of radiation-induced chromosomal aberrations were investigated using the dicentric chromosome assay.

Parallel human whole blood samples, pretreated with amifostine (250 μg/mL), lycopene (5 μg/mL), and/or their combinations were irradiated for 30 minutes with ⁶⁰Co γ rays (1, 2, 3, and 4 Gy) with a dose rate of 98.46 cGy/min at SAD = 100 cm, in vitro and cocultured with control groups. The frequencies of chromosomal aberrations in the lymphocyte of the cells were analyzed.

There were no apparent chromosome aberrations in controls and also in the drug-treated groups in the absence of radiation. Radiodrug treatment significantly decreased frequency of the radiation-induced chromosome aberrations compared with radiation alone (P < .05). Amifostine reduced the frequency of radiation-induced dicentrics by 15.8%, 21.9%, 4.5%, and 11.6%, with dose protection factors (DPFs) of 1.2 ± 0.02, 1.3 ± 0.1, 1.05 ± 0.03, and 1.13 ± 0.02. Lycopene reduced the frequency by 17.2%, 3.07%, 1.63%, and 16.6%, with DPFs of 1.21 ± 0.12, 1.03±0.05, 1.02±0.03 and 1.12±0.03. The combination treatment reduced the frequency by 28%, 24.9%, 9%, and 31.2%, with DPFs of 1.38 ± 0.06, 1.33 ± 0.06, 1.09 ± 0.02, and 1.45 ± 0.03 with radiation doses of 1, 2, 3, and 4 Gy, respectively.

It can be suggested that pretreatment with combined amifostine and lycopene may reduce the extent of ionizing radiation damage in cells.