2024 Faculty Courses School of Engineering Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Graduate major in Nuclear Engineering
Radiation Biology and Medicine
- Academic unit or major
- Graduate major in Nuclear Engineering
- Instructor(s)
- Yoshihisa Matsumoto
- Class Format
- Lecture (Face-to-face)
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - 1-2 Tue / 1-2 Fri
- Class
- -
- Course Code
- NCL.B401
- Number of credits
- 200
- Course offered
- 2024
- Offered quarter
- 3Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 14, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
Radiation is now indispensable in medicine, diagnosis and treatment of various diseases including cancer. Understanding the biological effects of radiation is essential for the safe use of radiation and atomic energy. This course provides a systematic understanding of various biological effects of radiation from cellular and molecular level to tissue and individual level.
Course description and aims
(1) Understand various biological effects of radiation and their relationships to radiation dose. (2) Understand the biological meanings and mechanisms of radiation biological effects and biological response to radiation, based on molecular and cellular biology. (3) Understand the principles and practice of diagnostic and therapeutic use of radiation and radiation protection.
Keywords
Radiation Effects, Radiation Therapy, Radiation Diagnosis, DNA Damage/Repair, Radiation Sensitivity
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
Subjects: Class 1-4: First learn the types, properties, quantities and units of radiation and radioactive materials and then learn various radiation effects and their relationships to radiation dose. Finally, discuss actual cases of radiation effects, like nuclear explosions and radioactivity accidents. Class 5-7: For systematic understanding of the biological effects of radiation, learn basic molecular and cellular biology. Class 8-10: First learn the definition of cell death and the quantitative relationship between cell survival and radiation dose with its model. Next learn biological defense mechanisms against radiation-induced DNA damage and underlying molecular mechanisms. Class 11 and 12: Learn various factors which modify the biological effects of radiation. Class 13-15: Learn the principles and practices of diagnostic and therapeutic use of radiation and radiation protection. Finally, introduce cutting edge research to elucidate the mechanisms of the biological effects of radiation. Take-home assignments for preparation and review will be given in each class. There will be several short tests to check understanding.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Basis for Biological Effects of radiation: Types, Properties, Quantities and Units of Radiation and Radioactive Substances | 1. Definition of the quantities and units related to radiation: radioactivity (Bq), absorbed dose (Gy), equivalent dose and effective dose (Sv). 2.Types and properties of radiation and radioactive substances. |
| Class 2 | Overview of Biological Effects of Radiation (1): Categorization of Radiation Effects; Acute Effects: Tissue Effects. | 1. Categorization of radiation effects (especially deterministic and stochastic effects). 2. Acute radiation syndrome (hematopoietic syndrome, gastro-intestinal syndrome). 3. Tissue effects (reproductive organs, skin, eye). |
| Class 3 | Overview of Biological Effects of Radiation (2): Effects on Fetus; Carcinogenesis; Hereditary Effects | 1. Effects on fetus (malformation etc.). 2. Carcinogenesis (Atomic bomb, high background area etc. ). 3. Hereditary effects (epidemiology and animal studies). 4. Risk (relative risk and absolute risk). |
| Class 4 | Overview of Biological Effects of Radiation (3): Radiation Effects of Atomic Bomb and Nuclear Accident | Discuss radiation effects in atomic bomb and nuclear accidents (Chernobyl, Tokai-mura JCO, Fukushima Daiichi etc.). |
| Class 5 | Molecular and Cellular Biology for Radiation Biology and Medicine (1): Cells and Biological Molecules | 1. Constituents of living organisms; cell, organelles and biological molecules (DNA, RNA, protein etc.). 2. DNA replication, transcription and translation. 3. Cell cycle. |
| Class 6 | Molecular and Cellular Biology for Radiation Biology and Medicine (2): Gene expression and signal transduction. | 1. Genotype and phenotype. 2. Spatial and temporal control of gene expression. 3. Intracellular transduction of signals and protein posttranslational modification. |
| Class 7 | Radiation Effects and Radiation Responses at Molecular and Cellular Level (1): Cell Death; Cell Survival Curve; Recovery | 1. Various mode of cell death and definition (reproductive death, mitotic death, interphase death, apoptosis, necrosis). 2. Cell survival curves and models (target-hit model and linear-quadratic (LQ) model). 3. Sublethal damage recovery (SLDR) and potentially lethal damage recovery (PLDR). |
| Class 8 | Radiation Effects and Radiation Responses at Molecular and Cellular Level (2): DNA Damage and Repair | 1. Types of DNA damages. 2. Repair of DNA damages (especially the repair of DNA double-strand breaks). 3. Radiosensitive syndrome (XP, SCID, AT, NBS etc.). |
| Class 9 | Radiation Effects and Radiation Responses at Molecular and Cellular Level (3): Cell cycle checkpoints and apoptosis | 1. Mechanism and biological significance of cell cycle checkpoints. 2. Mechanism and biological significance of apoptosis. |
| Class 10 | Factors Modifying Biological Effects of Radiation (1): Dose Fractionation, Dose Rate; LET; Oxygen | 1. Effects of dose fractionation and low dose rate radiation. 2. Linear energy transfer (LET) and relative biological effectiveness (RBE). 3. Oxygen enhancement ratio (OER) and hypoxic cells. |
| Class 11 | Factors Modifying Biological Effects of Radiation (2): Radiosensitizers and Radioprotectors | 1. Radiosensitizers (hypoxic cell sensitizer, DNA repair enzyme inhibitor etc.). 2. Radioprotectors (radical scavenger etc.) |
| Class 12 | Group Work, Presentation | |
| Class 13 | Principles and Practices of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Use of Radiation | 1. Radiation diagnosis (CT, PET etc.). 2. Radiation therapy (IMRT, particle therapy, brachytherapy etc.) |
| Class 14 | Principles and Practices of Radiation Protection/Introduction to Cutting Edge Research of Radiation Biology and Medicine | 1. International organizations (ICRP, IAEA, UNSCEAR etc.). 2. Justification, Optimization (ALARA) and Dose Limit. 3. Introduce what is going on at the frontier of the research to elucidate the mechanisms of biological effects of radiation. |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
No textbook is assigned.
Reference books, course materials, etc.
Radiobiology for the Radiologist, seventh edition. E.J. Hall and Amato J. Giaccia Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins
Evaluation methods and criteria
Assignments (40%), Short tests (25%), Report (25%), Others(Group task, presentation etc.)(10%)
Related courses
- NCL.U401 ： Measurement of Environmental Radiation
- NCL.U403 ： Environmental Dynamics of Radioactive Nuclides
- NCL.N401 ： Basic Nuclear Physics
- CAP.E361 ： Radiation Chemistry
- ZUB.F332 ： Fundamental Radioactivity and its Application
- TSE.A340 ： Basic Nuclear Engineering 4
Prerequisites
No particular prerequisites but recommend to take "Fundamental Radioactivity and its Application" (ZUB.F332), "Radiation Chemistry" (CAP.E361), "Basic Nuclear Engineering 4" (TSE.A340) or "Basic Nuclear Physics" (NCL.N401) in advance.
Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).
Professor Yoshihisa MatsumotoOffice: Rm.160, 1st floor, Ookayama N-1 Building
E-mail: yoshim[at]zc.iir.titech.ac.jp Tel: 03-5734-2273
Office hours
During 3rd quarter, 10:45-12:15 on Tuesdays. In other periods and weekdays, please make an appointment by e-mail.