Interaction of low-intensity nuclear radiation dose with the human blood: Using the new technique of CR-39NTDs for an in vitro study

Complete blood counts were analyzed for 30 samples of human blood with radiation dose rate ranging between 10 and 41 μSv/h using a Radium-226 source with different time of exposure. A new technique involving a nuclear track detector type CR-39(CR-39 NTDs) was used to estimate the alpha particle density incident on the blood samples.The results show that the ranges of alpha particle in blood samples and on the surface of CR-39NTDs vary exponentially with energy of alpha particles. This depends on the restricted energy loss and target density.Changes in the blood components due to irradiation occurred for different durations of irradiation, and the duration of irradiation that influenced the blood samples in this study was 6 min. The change in red blood cell (RBC) was negligible, so it is less affected than other blood components.In addition, most changes in the blood contents began at a low radiation dose (10.38–13.41 μSv/h). For the doses 13.41–21.77 μSv/h, platelet (PLT) counts increased rapidly and adversely with the RBC and white blood cell (WBC) due to chromosomal aberration. Besides, rapid PLT count reduction rapidly at high dose (42.1 μSv h) causes thrombocytopenia; in contrast, WBC increased, which is an indication of cancer caused due to increase in alpha particle dose. Generally, our results are in agreement with the essentials of blood content and the principles of biological radiation interaction.