Radiation Biology

Topic I	Interactions of radiation with matter: Types of ionizing radiation; The physics and chemistry of radiation absorption in solutions and in living systems; Radiation dosimetry and dosimeters.
Topic II	Mammalian cell radiosensitivity: Interphase, reproductive and apoptotic cell death; Characteristics of cell survival curves - interpretive models based on target theory or repair theory; Quantitation of the radiosensitivity of various normal tissues.
Topic III	DNA damage: DNA as the principle target of radiation killing; Single and double-strand DNA breaks; Mechanisms of DNA repair; Chromosomal aberrations and their use as 'radiation dosimeters'.
Topic IV	Cellular factors that modify radiation response: The role of oxygen in modifying the chemistry of radiation damage and cellular radiosensitivity; The role of the cell cycle in influencing radiation response.
Topic V	Normal cell and tissue radiosensitivity: Characteristics of cell populations that affect sensitivity; Methods of measurement; Reasons for the latent period between damage and its expression.
Topic VI	Background radiation: Natural and man-made sources of radiation; Alpha particles; Dosimetry for background radiation.
Topic VII	Whole body irradiation - acute effects of high doses: Prodromal syndromes; Cerebrovascular, gastrointestinal and hematopoietic syndromes; Mean lethal doses; Treatments for whole body exposure.
Topic VIII	Lessons from Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Chernobyl: Acute and chronic health effects on those exposed; Assessment of exposure doses; Assessment of present day risks, and radiation protection standards imposed by government committees including ICRP, NCRP, UNSCEAR and BIER.
Topic IX	Low dose effects on humans: The mechanisms of radiation-induced mutagenesis and carcinogenesis; Oncogenes and suppressor genes; Susceptibility of various organs; Risks of developing cancers from present-day sources; The hereditary effects of radiation; Effects on the embryo and fetus.
Topic X	Radiation protectors: History of the development of protectors; Chemistry and biology of radiation protection; Current applications.
Topic XI	Use of radiation for cancer therapy: Deficient vascularization, high interstitial pressure and hypoxia in solid tumors; Significance of tumor physiology for radiation treatment; Tumor regrowth and tumor cure assays; Technology of therapeutic x-ray machines.
Topic XII	Alternate treatment modalities for cancer: The usefulness of other types of ionizing radiation including, protons, neutrons, and heavy ions; Photodynamic therapy.
Topic XIII	Molecular responses to ionizing radiation: Basic techniques of molecular biology - oncogenic transformation, Southern/Northern/Western blots, transfections; Genes induced by radiation or hypoxia; Relevance of induced gene expression to the radioresponse of cells and tissues; Brief consideration of innovative therapeutic interventions based on modern molecular techlogy.
Topic XIV	The cytosol and radiation response: Mechanisms of signal transduction from the cytosol to the nucleus, or vice versa, factors influencing radiation response of mammalian cells; Important gene products including p53, bcl-2, ras, and bFGF will be discussed.