[The biological effects in animals in relation to the accident at the Chernobyl Atomic Electric Power Station. 9. The morphofunctional indices of the immunocompetent organs in mice]. / Biologicheskie éffekty u zhivotnykh v sviazi s avariei na Chernobyl'skoi AES. Soobshchenie 9. Morfofunktsional'nye pokazateli nekotorykh immunokompetentnykh organov myshei.

The permanent action of small doses of low-intensity radiation on the immune status of 2.5-3.5 month CC57W mice has been investigated. Total doses of internal and external irradiation were about few cGy. The permanent action of low-level radiation on the experimental animals of the first and fourth generations was shown to change spleen and lymph nodes weights and the count of lymphocytes isolated from these organs. Cellularity and DNA synthesis in the lymph-node lymphocytes and their proliferative response to polyclonal mitogens also changed. The alterations in the parameters that characterized T-lymphocyte population were statistically significant.

[The biological effects in animals in relation to the accident at the Chernobyl Atomic Electric Power Station. 10. Cooperative immune reactions in different generations of mice]. / Biologicheskie éffekty u zhivotnykh v sviazi s avariei na Chernobyl'skoi AES. Soobshchenie 10. Kooperativnye immunnye reaktsii u razlichnykh pokolenii myshei.

The immune status of mice has been assessed by the whole complex of data. The permanent action of low-level radiation has been shown to suppress considerably the rate of reactions of the delayed-type hypersensitivity and "graft versus host" disease, as well as NK and specific cytolytic T-lymphocyte activity. The dynamics of accumulation and the levels of antiviral antibodies in the serum, lung and trachea extracts are virtually invariable. The resistance of experimental animals to influenza is lower than that of non-irradiated mice of the same line and age. The data obtained indicate that the immune disturbances revealed are connected not only with the alteration of lymphoid cell populations, but also with the alteration of the immune regulation mechanisms.