134 The Lymphocyte and Lymphocytic Tissue 



Degenerating and necrotic lymphocytes were seen in the blood smears of 

 two men who received an acute body exposure of 290 and 880 r. 1G The 

 dying and dead cells showed patchy condensation of chromatin, intra- 

 nuclear vacuoles, and cytoplasmic basophilic granules and vacuoles. An 

 occasional lymphocyte had a pyknotic nucleus. The degenerating cells con- 

 tinued to be present until the time of death, 21 and 10 days after irradiation. 

 In patients who received therapeutic irradiation, as many as 20 per cent 



»MAN 



oRABBIT 



9 RAT 



■Too §00 



DOSAGE- ROENTGENS 



Fig. 10-9. The relationship between dosage of total body x-irradiation and 

 minimal blood lymphocyte count in rat, rabbit, and man. (Data from Sacher 

 and Pearlman, 46 Hemplemann, Lisco, and Hoffman, 16 and Nickson. 40 ) 



of the white blood cells were degenerating during the first 2 weeks after 

 x-rays or radium therapy. 34 Goodfellow 15 observed cells with bizarre-shaped 

 nuclei and also rare cells with intranuclear vacuoles. He called these cells 

 "monocytes," although he and others report great difficulty in classifying 

 these abnormal cells. The degenerating lymphocytes in blood smears are 

 not specific for radiation but are also seen after administration of nitrogen 

 mustard. 



In rats exposed to the sublethal dose of 400 r, pyknotic lymphocytes 

 appeared in the blood and reached a peak of 7 per cent of the lymphocytes at 

 three hours after irradiation and then declined rapidly. 59 In normal rats 



