CHAPTER 10 



Effects of Radiation on Bacteria 



M. R. Zelle 



Cornell University 

 Ithaca, New York 



Alexander Hollaender^ 



Biology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory 

 Oak Ridge, Tennessee 



Bactericidal effects of radiation. High-energy radiations: General results of quatdita- 

 tive investigations. Factors influencing sensitivity to ionizing radiations: Ultravioiet 

 radiation — Extreme ultraviolet radiation — Near- ultraviolet and short-visible radiation. 

 Physiological properties of bacteria following irradiation. Sublethal effects of radiation. 

 Bacterial genetics: Radiation-induced mutations in bacteria — Mechanism of radiation 

 effects. 



One of the first laboratory observations of the effects of radiations on bac- 

 teria was published by Downes and Blunt in 1877. Since that date a volu- 

 minous literature has accumulated as a result of the wide interest in the 

 effects of radiation on bacteria per se and also because of the relative ease 

 with which quantitative studies of the biological effects of radiation can 

 be made with bacteria. 



Despite the numerous investigations during the past seventy-five years, 

 understanding of the effects of radiation on bacteria is still only fragmen- 

 tary. Furthermore, the advances since the 1936 predecessors of these 

 volumes, especially during the past decade, have been rapid in comparison 

 to the advances in earlier work. For example, almost all knowledge of 

 radiation-induced mutations in bacteria has been gained since that time. 

 Consequently, in the limited space available, no attempt will be made to 

 review completely the earlier literature. Rather, only those earlier con- 

 tributions considered to be especially significant will be included with corre- 

 spondingly greater emphasis on recent research. The rather numerous 

 reviews concerned with various aspects of the biological effects of radia- 

 tion combine to give a complete coverage of the development of the field 



' ^\'o^k performed iiiuier Contract Xo. W-7405-eng-26 for the Atomic Energy 

 Commission. 



365 



