Alpha Radiation Can Damage DNA Even When It Misses the Cell Nucleus
SEP 01, 1999
An alpha‐particle microbeam that can precisely irradiate specific parts of cells is being used to investigate radiation‐induced genetic mutations.
DOI: 10.1063/1.882807
The biggest source of alpha radiation in our everyday lives is radon gas, which seeps out of the ground to accumulate in buildings and enter our lungs—with the potential to kill. Based on the average domestic radon concentration, the US Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that radon could cause up to 23 000 lung cancer deaths in the US each year.
© 1999. American Institute of Physics
