Reparative effects after low-dose radiation exposure: Inhibition of atherosclerosis by reducing NETs release

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2024-10, Vol.947, p.174540, Article 174540
• Main Authors: Qu, Shugen, Qiu, Xu, Liu, Jiao, Feng, Ruojing, Wang, Yuanfeng, Dong, Xiuwen, Jin, Yiheng, Liu, Xiaodong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Angiocardiopathy; Atherosclerosis; Immune infiltration; Ionizing radiation; NETs
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.174540

The cardiovascular system effects of environmental low-dose radiation exposure on radiation practitioners remain uncertain and require further investigation. The aim of this study was to initially investigate and explore the mechanisms by which low-dose radiation may contribute to atherosclerosis through a multi-omics joint comprehensive basic experiment. We used WGCNA and differential analyses to identify shared genes and potential pathways between radiation injury and atherosclerosis sequencing datasets, as well as tissue transcriptome immune infiltration level extrapolation and single-cell transcriptome data correction using the CIBERSORT deconvolution algorithm. Animal models were constructed by combining a high-fat diet with 5 Gy γ-ray whole-body low-dose ionizing radiation. The detection of NETs release was validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Analysis reveals shared genes in both datasets of post-irradiation and atherosclerosis, suggesting that immune system neutrophils may be a key node connecting radiation to atherosclerosis. NETs released by neutrophil death can influence the development of atherosclerosis. Animal experiments showed that the number of neutrophils decreased (P