Delayed effects of radiation: A literature review

Abstract

Relevance: The effect of radiation on the immune system of the offspring of persons affected by exposure to low doses of various radiation types is still an urgent issue. In the literature, several issues related to delayed consequences, namely, morphofunctional disorders in the organs of the descendants of irradiated individuals, have not received adequate resolution.

The study aimed to analyze literature on the long-term effects of radiation, manifested by morphofunctional disorders of the immunocompetent organs in the descendants of persons exposed to radiation, to confirm the importance of further study of this issue.

Methods: The review included publications indexed in PubMed, Medline, E-library, and CyberLeninka databases. The search was made using the Google Scholar search engine. The applied search filters included conducted experimental studies over the past eight years (2015-2023).

Results: The search revealed insufficient publications devoted to studying metabolic processes and histomorphological changes in the immunocompetent organs of the body of the descendants of exposed individuals. An insufficient number of publications on long-term biochemical and pathohistological changes in immune system organs due to irradiation necessitate a profound study of the topic.

Conclusion: The study of morphofunctional disorders in the descendants of the first generation of irradiated individuals remains a task for radiobiologists and oncologists, with the development of criteria for morphological diagnosis.