Impact of Low-Dose CT Radiation on Gene Expression and DNA Integrity

Schmid N, Gorte V, Akers M, Verloh N, Haimerl M, Stroszczynski C, Scherthan H, Orben T, Stewart S, Kubitscheck L, Kaatsch HL, Port M, Abend M, Ostheim P (2025)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2025

Journal

International Journal of Molecular Sciences MDPI

Book Volume: 26

Article Number: 11869

Journal Issue: 24

DOI: 10.3390/ijms262411869

Abstract

Computed tomography (CT) is a major source of low-dose ionizing radiation exposure in medical imaging. Risk assessment at this dose level is difficult and relies on the hypothetical linear no-threshold model. To address the response to such low doses in patients undergoing CT scans, we examined radiation-induced alterations at the transcriptomic and DNA damage levels in peripheral blood cells. Peripheral whole blood of 60 patients was collected before and after CT. Post-CT samples were obtained 4–6 h after scan (n = 28, in vivo incubation) or alternatively immediately after the CT scan, followed by ex vivo incubation (n = 32). The gene expression of known radiation-responsive genes (n = 9) was quantified using qRT-PCR. DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) were assessed in 12 patients through microscopic γ-H2AX + 53BP1 DSB focus staining. The mean dose–length product (DLP) across all scans was 561.9 ± 384.6 mGy·cm. Significant differences in the median differential gene expression (DGE) were detected between in vivo and ex vivo incubation conditions, implicating that ex vivo incubation masked the true effect in low-dose settings. The median DGE of in vivo-incubated samples showed a significant upregulation of EDA2R, MIR34AHG, PHLDA3, DDB2, FDXR, and AEN (p ranging from <0.001 to 0.041). In vivo, we observed a linear dose-dependent upregulation for several genes and an explained variance of 0.66 and 0.56 for AEN and FDXR, respectively. DSB focus analysis revealed a slight, non-significant increase in the average DSB damage post-exposure, at a mean DLP of 321.0 mGy·cm. Our findings demonstrate that transcriptional biomarkers are sensitive indicators of low-dose radiation exposure in medical imaging and could prove themselves as clinically applicable biodosimetry tools. Furthermore, the results underscore the need for dose optimization.

Authors with CRIS profile

Michael Akers Institute of Radiology

Involved external institutions

Universität Ulm DE Germany (DE) Universitätsklinikum Regensburg DE Germany (DE) Universitätsmedizin der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz DE Germany (DE) Klinikum Würzburg Mitte DE Germany (DE) Bundeswehrzentralkrankenhaus Koblenz DE Germany (DE)

How to cite

APA:

Schmid, N., Gorte, V., Akers, M., Verloh, N., Haimerl, M., Stroszczynski, C.,... Ostheim, P. (2025). Impact of Low-Dose CT Radiation on Gene Expression and DNA Integrity. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(24). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms262411869

MLA:

Schmid, Nikolai, et al. "Impact of Low-Dose CT Radiation on Gene Expression and DNA Integrity." International Journal of Molecular Sciences 26.24 (2025).

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