CIPROFLOXACIN INCREASES SURVIVAL AFTER IONIZING IRRADIATION COMBINED INJURY: γ-H2AX FORMATION CYTOKINE/CHEMOKINE AND RED BLOOD CELLS

摘要

Exposure to ionizing radiation alone (radiation injury, as abbreviated RI) or combined with traumatic tissue injury (radiation combined injury, as abbreviated CI) is a crucial life-threatening factor in nuclear and radiological accidents. It is well-documented that RI and CI occur at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and system levels. However, their mechanisms remain largely unclear. It has been observed in dogs, pigs, rats, guinea pigs, and mice that radiation exposure combined with burns, wounds, or bacterial infection results in greater mortality than radiation exposure alone. In our laboratory, we found that B6D2F1/J female mice exposed to 9.75 Gy ⁶⁰Co-γ photon radiation followed by 15% total body surface area wounds experienced 50% higher mortality (over 30-day observation period) compared to irradiation alone. CI enhanced DNA damages, amplified iNOS activation, induced massive release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, overexpressed MMPs and TLRs and aggravated sepsis that led to cell death. In the present study, B6D2F1/J mice received CI were treated with ciprofloxacin (CIP, 90 mg/kg p.o., q.d. within 2h after CI through day 21). At day 1, CIP treatment significantly reduced CI-induced γ-H2AX formation. At day 10, CIP treatment not only significantly reduced cytokine/chemokine concentrations, including IL-6 and KC (i.e., IL-8 in human), but also enhanced IL-3 production compared to vehicle-treated controls. CIP also elevated red blood cell counts, hemoglobin levels and hematocrits. At day 30, CIP treatment increased 45% survival after CI (i.e., 2.3-fold increase over vehicle treatment). The results suggest that CIP may prove to be an effective therapeutic drug for CI.