Faculty of Science

Objectives

To give the effects of ionizing radiation on biophysical material from molecular interactions, through sub-cellular and cellular levels of organization, to the response of tissues, organs and the whole body; Includes the application of radiation biology in oncology and the biological aspects of environmental radiation exposure. The course will also treat Radiation Physics covers the concepts of radiation, its production, detection, measurement and interaction with matter and properties.

Contents

The Bohr atomic model: Scattering of radiation and emission of radiation, Angular distribution of photons and larmor relationship, Production of X-Rays, X-Ray spectra; Targets, Absorption of waves and attenuation coefficients, Thompson scattering, photoelectric effect, pair production, Compton effect, scattering cross sections and atomic number, Photon energy, Neutrons and their interaction with matter, Hard collisions, soft collisions and radiative collisions, Range of charged particles in matter, Introduction to Monte Carlo techniques, Units and quantities of radiation, Energy deposition, Direct and indirect effect, Radiation chemistry of aqueous solutions, DNA damage and repair, Radiation-induced chromosome damage, Models of cell killing by radiation and the nature of the lethal lesion, in vitro and in vivo assays of clonogenicity, Radiation survival curves and their analysis, physical, chemical and biological factors which modify radiation survival, Acute radiation response of tissues and organs including the immune system, Acute radiation syndrome, Delayed and late effects of radiation, Radiation pathology; Radiation damage to the fetus: Tumor cell kinetics: repopulation, reassortment, repairs hypoxia and reoxygenation in solid tumors; Therapeutic ratio: fractionation and iso-effect relationships interpreted by the linear quadratic model; Interaction of radiation with chemotherapy, specific radiosensitizers and radioprotectors; Clinical use of hyperthermia, Photodymaic Therapy radiation, Stochastic and non-stochastic radiation effects, Mutagenesis, Carcinogensis.