Radiation Induced Cognitive Decline - Precursor Cell Integrity

Precursor Cell Integrity

Precursor cells may be damaged by radiation. This damage of the cells may prevent the precursor cells from differentiating into neurons and result in decreased neurogenesis. To determine whether the precursor cells are impaired in their ability to differentiate, two cultures were prepared by Fike et al. One of these cultures contained precursor cells from an irradiated rat’s hippocampus and the second culture contained non-irradiated precursor cells from a rat hippocampus. The precursor cells were then observed while they continued to develop. The results indicated that the irradiated culture contained a higher number of differentiated neuron and glial cells in comparison to the control. It was also found that the ratios of glial cells to neurons in both cultures were similar. These results suggest that the radiation did not impair the precursor cells ability to differentiate into neurons and therefore neurogenesis is still possible.