Animal age: A factor influencing the time of death following local thoracic irradiation

Abstract

The lungs of 3, 4, 6 or 12 month old mice were locally irradiated with a single dose of 1100 rad and the time of animal death was determined. The findings indicate that the onset of the animal deaths is a function of the age of the animals at the time of treatment; the older mice were more resistant to radiation. The median time of death was 20 weeks (134–140 days) for 3 and 4 month old mice, 24 weeks (162–168 days) for 6 month old mice, and 28 weeks (190–196 days) for 12 month old mice.