Jakarta –
On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor in northern Ukraine exploded. The explosion resulted in a large wave of radiation.
In fact, almost four decades, the Chernobyl Power Plant and the surrounding area are still uninhabited by humans. This event makes it one of the largest nuclear disasters.
The nuclear radiation that emerged as a result of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki alone has caused the emergence of various types of physical disabilities and diseases. According to studies, thousands of victims suffer from physical disabilities, cataracts, cancer, neurodevelopmental disorders, and much more.
The effects of nuclear radiation are so devastating, encouraging scientists to examine the impact of radiation from nuclear disasters such as Chernobyl and Fukushima on a number of simple organisms such as bacteria and fungi, as well as frogs, birds and small mammals.
One study, conducted by Tim Mousseau from the University of South Carolina and the National Human Genome Research Institute, examined the DNA of 302 stray dogs found in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ).
From the results of research published in the journal Science Advances in March 2023, they detailed genome changes in stray dogs living around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
Researchers found significant genetic differences in dogs in the area and dogs living 10 miles away from the contamination area. It is known that these dogs are the descendants of people’s pets that were abandoned during the evacuation 440 years ago.
“It’s possible that we might discover some aspect of their physiology that could provide protection to other organisms,” Tim Mousseau told Popular Mechanics.
How Simple Organisms Survive Radiation
Reporting from the Popular Mechanics page, one of the organisms that can survive nuclear radiation is bacteria and fungi.
Michael Cox, a molecular biologist from the University of Wisconsin, said that bacteria have evolved to live in harsh desert climates and developed various mechanisms to repair DNA damage caused by nuclear radiation.
Scientists demonstrated the bacteria’s resilience by taking soil samples from the Sonoran Desert and soil from a swamp in Louisiana. Then, they exposed both samples to high doses of ionizing radiation. As a result, soil bacteria from the Sonoran Desert still survived.
Cox explains that desert bacteria have evolved to become inactive when exposed to harsh, dry weather in deserts. During this dormancy period, bacteria experience DNA damage.
However, when it rains, the bacteria spring back to life to repair DNA damage quickly, and reproduce while they can. This shows extra ability to survive radiation.
“This is one of the things that makes me confident that if we do something stupid and blow ourselves up, we won’t wipe out all life on the planet. There are some living things that will survive,” Cox said.
There are also some fungi that not only survive in radioactive environments, but even use radiation as an energy source in a process known as radiosynthesis. This mushroom contains melanin, which has a protective effect against radiation damage.
This protection is also shown by plants as a form of adaptation. For example, birch tree pollen and evening primrose seeds collected from contaminated areas around Chernobyl have shown improvements in DNA systems since the explosion.
So what about other animals?
Regarding more complex animals, there is still little research that knows about it. Therefore, the Mousseau Team tried to understand it through their research on dogs.
Although Mousseau and his colleagues remain skeptical about the ability to evolve and thrive in high-radiation environments, he admits that some animals may have adapted to tolerate it.
“We have reason to believe that it is very difficult to develop resistance, but at the same time, one of the most profound observations of all our research is the enormous variation among individuals and species and their sensitivity to radioactivity,” Mousseau said.
They also said that in research on birds and small mammals, they found species with increased antioxidants which play a role in neutralizing oxidative damage caused by free radicals.
One example of this protective mechanism is found in a small rodent called the bank vole. This rodent, whose scientific name is Myodes glareolus, is generally found throughout the Chernobyl area.
In research published in 2018, scientists studied mouse cells in the region around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. They took skin cell samples from mice in the Chernobyl area and from uncontaminated areas.
They exposed cell samples to a dose of 10 Gy of gamma radiation. Typically, 4 to 5 Gy of gamma radiation in a short period of time is fatal to humans. As a result, the skin cells of Chernobyl mice were able to sustain higher doses.
Researchers also tested the cells against three DNA-damaging drugs and found that the Chernobyl mouse cells were resistant and had higher levels of antioxidants on average.
“They had almost twice the total antioxidant capacity as control cells,” Mousseau said.
But for scientists to truly understand the impact of radiation, they must continue to investigate the animals and plants of the region, looking for elements in their DNA that allow them to survive.
Watch the video “Factors that caused the Chernobyl nuclear disaster”
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2023-09-22 12:00:01
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