Author(s): Pedra, Carla ; Nolasco, Sofia ; Belchior, Ana
Date: 2024
Origin: ROENTGEN - Revista Científica das Técnicas Radiológicas
Subject(s): Genetic damage; magnetic fields; biological effects; DNA strand breaks; Danos genéticos; campos magnéticos; efeitos biológicos; quebras nas cadeias de ADN
Introduction: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) represents one of the greatest technological advances in terms of medical imaging technique used in radiology. Due to the increased number of pathologies diagnosed by MRI, the number of patients has been increasing over the years, and consequently there is an increase of patients’ exposure to non-ionizing radiation. This exposure reveals to be a concern due to the lack of knowledge about the biological effects induced by non-ionizing radiation. Objectives: Quantification of the biological effects induced after MR exposure, including the detection of single-strand breaks (SSB) using the XRCC1 protein and double-strand breaks (DSB) using the histone γ-H2AX. Additionally, we studied the late damage by quantifying the number of induced micronuclei. Methods: This is a cross-sectional, experimental, and case-control study, with two types of human Glioblastoma cell lines, the U373 MG cell line and the T98G cell line. These cell lines were exposed to magnetic fields on a Siemens Healthcare 3.0T Magnetom Skyra clinical MRI equipment. Cytogenetic protocols were applied for detection of the induced biological effects. Results: Regarding SSBs in both samples exposed to MRI, it is possible to verify a significant increase in XRCC1 and, on the other hand, in relation to the DSBs no damage was found by γ-H2AX quantification. In the micronucleus (MN) quantification study, it was possible to confirm that the percentage of cells with micronuclei is considerably higher in the samples of the exposed cell lines. Conclusions: It is important to analyze the adverse effects of the use of MRI at a biological level. This must be understood, recognized, and considered for the safety of patients and occupational exposure.
