Mutagenesis; Dangers Of Low Dose Ionizing Radiation

/ AGR Free Press

Mutagenesis ( /mjuːtəˈdʒɛnɪsɪs/) is a process by which the genetic information of an organism is changed, resulting in a mutation. It may occur spontaneously in nature, or as a result of exposure to mutagens (such as manmade synthetic radioactive contaminants; strontium, plutonium, uranium, thorium, Xenon, Krypton, Iodine, and approximately 900 hundred more like these.)  

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Mutagenesis can lead to cancer and various inheritable diseases, but it is also the driving force of evolution (over millions of years, with only small amounts of natural background radiation). Mutagenesis as a science was developed based on work done by Hermann Muller, Charlotte Auerbach and J. M. Robson in the first half of the 20th century.[1] (Man made radiation is greatly increasing the speed and negative consequences of mutagenesis)

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http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/09/number-of-global-infant-mortality.html

Summary of Negative Health Effects Of Low Dose Radiation On Children Around Chernobyl; via A Green Roadhttp://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/03/low-dose-chernobyl-and-fukushima.html


Background


DNA may be modified, either naturally or artificially, by a number of physical, chemical and biological agents, resulting in mutations. In 1927, Hermann Muller first demonstrated mutation with observable changes in the chromosomes can be caused by irradiating fruit flies with X-ray,[2] and lent support to the idea of mutation as the cause of cancer.[3] His contemporaryLewis Stadler also showed the mutational effect of X-ray on barley in 1928,[4] and ultraviolet(UV) radiation on maize in 1936.[5] In 1940s, Charlotte Auerbach and J. M. Robson, found that mustard gas can also cause mutations in fruit flies.[6]


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While changes to the chromosome caused by X-ray and mustard gas were readily observable to the early researchers, other changes to the DNA induced by other mutagens were not so easily observable, and the mechanism may be complex and takes longer to unravel. For example, soot was suggested to be a cause of cancer as early as 1775,[7] and coal tar was demonstrated to cause cancer in 1915.[8] The chemicals involved in both were later shown to be polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH).[9]

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DNA may sustain more than 50,000 damages per cell per day,[13] and some estimates put the number of oxidative adducts per cell generated through reactive oxidative species at 150,000.[14] If left uncorrected, these adducts can give rise to mutation. In nature, the mutations that arise may be beneficial or deleterious – it is the driving force of evolution, an organism may acquire new traits through genetic mutation, but mutation may also result in impaired function of the genes, and in severe cases, causing the death of the organism.



In the laboratory, however, mutagenesis is a useful technique for generating mutations that allows the functions of genes and gene products to be examined in detail, producing proteins with improved characteristics or novel function, as well as mutant strains with useful properties. Initially the ability of radiation and chemical mutagens to cause mutation was exploited to generate random mutations, later techniques were developed to introduce specific mutations. (The danger of this theory however is allowing uncontrolled mutagenesis out in the world due to higher radiation levels, resulting in cascading negative chromosome changes, which then result in the extinction of all life on the planet.)

Low dose radiation causing changes in children; via A Green Road http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/03/radiation-causing-unusual-changes-whats.html


Mechanisms


Mutagenesis may occur endogenously, for example through spontaneous hydrolysis, or through normal cellular processes that can generate reactive oxygen species and DNA adducts, or through error in replication and repair.[15] Mutagenesis may also arise as a result of the presence of environmental mutagens that induces changes to the DNA. The mechanism by which mutation arises varies according to the causative agent, the mutagen, involved. Most mutagens act either directly, or indirectly via mutagenic metabolites, on the DNA producing lesions. Some however may affect the replication or chromosomal partition mechanism, and other cellular processes.


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Many chemical mutagens require biological activation to become mutagenic. An important group of enzymes involved in the generation of mutagenic metabolites is cytochrome P450.[16] Other enzymes that may also produce mutagenic metabolites include glutathione S-transferase and microsomal epoxide hydrolase. Mutagens that are not mutagenic by themselves but require biological activation are called promutagens.

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http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/09/number-of-global-infant-mortality.html

Summary of Negative Health Effects Of Low Dose Radiation On Children Around Chernobyl; via A Green Roadhttp://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/03/low-dose-chernobyl-and-fukushima.html

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http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-petkau-effect-and-low-dose.html

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Many mutations arise as a result of problems caused by the DNA lesions during replication, resulting in errors in replication. In bacteria, extensive damage to the DNA due to mutagens results in single-stranded DNA gaps during replication. This induces the SOS response, an emergency repair process that is also error-prone, thereby generating mutations. In mammalian cells, stalling of replication at a damaged sites induces a number of rescue mechanisms that help bypass DNA lesions, but which also may result in errors.

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Spontaneous hydrolysis


DNA is not entirely stable in aqueous solution. Under physiological conditions the glycosidic bond may be hydrolyzed spontaneously and 10,000 purine sites in DNA are estimated to be depurinated each day in a cell.[15] Numerous DNA repair pathway exist for the DNA, however, if the apurinic site failed to be repaired, misincorporation of nucleotide may occur during replication. Adenine is preferentially incorporated by DNA polymerases in an apurinic site.


Cytidine may also become deaminated to uridine at one five-hundredth of the rate of depurination and can result in G to A transition. Eukaryotic cells also contains 5-methylcytosine, thought to be involved in the control of gene transcription, which can become deaminated into thymine.

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http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/04/dr-chris-busby-consequences-of-burning.html

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Modification of bases
Bases may be modified endogenously by normal cellular molecules. For example DNA may be methylated by S-adenosylmethionine, and glycosylated by reducing sugars.
Many compounds, such as PAHs, aromatic amines, aflatoxin and pyrrolizidine alkaloids, may form reactive oxygen species catalyzed by cytochrome P450. These metabolites form adducts with the DNA, which can cause errors in replication, and the bulky aromatic adducts may form stable intercalation between bases and block replication. The adducts may also induce conformational changes in the DNA. Some adducts may also result in the depurination of the DNA,[17] it is however uncertain how significant such depurination as caused by the adducts is in generating mutation.[18]
Ionizing radiations and reactive oxygen species often oxidize guanine to produce 8-oxoguanine.

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Crosslinking

Some alkylating agents may produce crosslinking of DNA. Some natural occurring chemicals may also promotes crosslinking, such as psoralens after activation by UV radiation, and nitrous acid. Interstrand cross-linking is more damaging as it blocks replication and transcription and can cause chromosomal breakages and rearrangements. Some crosslinkers such as cyclophosphamide, mitomycin C and cisplatin are used as anticancer chemotherapeutic because their high degree of toxicity to proliferating cells.

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Dimerization


UV radiation promotes the formation of a cyclobutyl ring between adjacent thymines, resulting in the formation of pyrimidine dimers.[21] In human skin cells, thousands of dimers may be formed in a day due to normal exposure to sunlight. DNA polymerase η may help bypass these lesions in an error-free manner;[22] however, individuals with defective DNA repair function, such as sufferers of Xeroderma pigmentosum, are sensitive to sunlight and may be prone to skin cancer.
Ethidium intercalated between two adenine-thymine base pairs.
Intercalation between bases
The planar structure of chemicals such as ethidium bromide and proflavine allows them to insert between bases in DNA. This insert causes the DNA’s backbone to stretch and makes slippage in DNA during replication more likely to occur since the bonding between the strands is made less stable by the stretching. Forward slippage will result in deletion mutation, while reverse slippage will result in an insertion mutation. Also, the intercalation into DNA of anthracyclines such as daunorubicin and doxorubicin interferes with the functioning of the enzyme topoisomerase II, by tightening the DNA’s strands by the stretching, making replication as well as causing mitotic homologous recombination.
Small blue arrows in picture above indicates chromosomal breakages due to DNA damage (this is what radiation does to genes, whether that radiation comes from X rays, cancer radiation or nuclear power plant radiation via Tritium, etc.)
Backbone DNA Damage Caused By Radiation
Ionizing radiations may produce highly reactive free radicals that can break the bonds in the DNA. Double-stranded breakages are especially damaging and hard to repair, producing translocation and deletion of part of a chromosomes.
(Once the chromosomes are broken, they replicate this way, FOREVER, into future generations. This means that any radiation causing damage to ANY generation is then passed on to infinite future generations. This is the danger with nuclear radiation and power plant emissions happening worldwide, day after day.. the genetic damage keeps accumulating and is passed on in a negative downward spiral, forever and ever.)
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Alkylating agents like mustard gas may also cause breakages in the DNA backbone. Oxidative stress may also generate highly reactive oxygen species that can damage the DNA. Incorrect repair of other damages induced by the highly reactive species can also lead to mutations.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutagenesis


Many nuclear apologists and other supposed experts still believe and announce to anyone that will listen to them, that genetic damage and chromosome changes somehow are not carried forward into future generations. 


The genetic effects on humans has been studied for three generations around Chernobyl, since many hundreds of thousands of people are still living in radiation contaminated areas. Studies performed on populations living in Kyshtym and Semiplatinsk in the old USSR have confirmed other genetic studies, with links below. 

These studies, like others, show that the first generation has damage done to sperm, eggs, which then gets passed on to the next generation either in the form of birth defects, one of 2,500 genetic diseases, or genetic damage that is carried recessively. 

The second generation is also damaged, just like the first generation, from the same radiation. However, things get worse for the second generation because the damage is compounded by the damage passed through from the FIRST generation, so the two types of damage are added together. The second generation has worse health outcomes and more diseases, worse death rates and more infertility than the first generation. 

The third generation has to add the genetic/chromosome damage from the first two generations and then endure or suffer from the damages caused directly from the radiation to the third generation. The accumulated damage adds up to a heavy burden on health in all ways; physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. 

In areas around the radiation contaminated Belarus, the percentage of infants born healthy has been steadily going DOWN, and is now in the single digits. However, doctors commonly blame the mothers for ‘infections’ and lack of humor for those problems. The 90% negative health of infants at birth in Belarus is almost never found to be the fault of radiation, but somehow the ‘mothers’ are at fault for not smiling enough, while they are being radiated 24 hours a day. 

SCIENTIFIC AND MEDIAL STUDIES

THE EFFECT OF RADIATION ON SMALL COMPETING POPULATIONS OF DROSOPHZLA MELANOGASTER I. THE ACCUMULATION OF GENETIC DAMAGE; K. F. DYER
Medical Research Council, Radiobiological Research Unit, Harwell, Didcot, Berks, England; Received March 25, 1968

“THE genetic effects of ionizing radiations have now been studied extensively in a wide variety of systems. The study of their cumulative effects in populations has also been given increasing attention in recent years although, because of experimental difficulties, on a more restricted number of organisms. The effect
of radiation on a population will be to alter its genetic constitution and, therefore, presumably, to affect the biological fitness. …”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1212146/pdf/227.pdf

Genetic Effects of Radiation on Mammalian Populations
http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.ge.02.120168.000511

“The greatest threat of radioactivity to life as we know it is damage to the gene pool, the genetic make-up of all living species. Genetic damage from radiation exposure is cumulative over lifetimes and generations. Even low-dose exposures are carcinogenic after extended exposure. The current generation, the one in utero, and all that follow may suffer cancers, immune system damage, leukemias, miscarriages, stillbirths, deformities, and fertility problems. While many of these health problems are on the rise, individuals cannot prove either increase in “background” radiation or specific exposure as the cause. Only epidemiological evidence is scientifically acceptable to impute cause. Perhaps the most extreme outcome over time would be simply the wholesale cessation of the ability to reproduce. Radiation is a known cause of sterility….”
http://www.lenntech.com/periodic/elements/bk.htm

Transgenerational accumulation of radiation damage in small mammals chronically exposed to Chernobyl fallout
http://www.springerlink.com/content/d332767242p82201/

Genomic instability and radiation
http://iopscience.iop.org/0952-4746/23/2/304;jsessionid=36F7FF11B8AEB1015147E721D140CF9F.c2

Publications on Chornobyl, Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University
http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/chornobyl/publications.htm

Mutagenesis; Dangers Of Low Dose Ionizing Radiation; via A Green Road
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2012/12/mutagenesis-dangers-of-low-dose.html