Radiation quality and the shape of dose–effect curves at low doses of ionizing radiation for eukaryotic cells

• We supposed that cell target structure depends on the stage of cell growth.
• Various versions of mathematical model were considered theoretically.
• Different locations of sensitive sites within the cell nucleus were considered.
• We explain the change in form of cell survival curves on radiation quality.

To explain different yeast and mammalian cell response to low and high linear energy transfer (LET) radiation in low dose region, the dependence of fine target structure on the stage of cell growth was supposed. Theoretical consideration based on this suggestion was carried out. Results of calculations are qualitatively in agreement with experimental data under assuming that hit-event for both mammalian and yeast cells is a group of ionizations produced by the same ionizing particle. In the dependence of cell cycle phase, sensitive sites (presumable the vulnerable sections of chromosomes) can be located either in periphery of cell nucleus forming a thin layer inside the nucleus or distributed evenly over the whole nucleus. Such rearrangement of the target results in the alteration of the dependence of both survival curve shape and the relative biological effectiveness values on radiation quality.