The effects of ionizing radiation on domestic dogs: a review of the atomic bomb testing era

• Published in: Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society Vol. 96; no. 5; pp. 1799 - 1815
• Main Authors: Spatola, Gabriella J., Ostrander, Elaine A., Mousseau, Timothy A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.10.2021
• Subjects: Accident prediction; Animals; Atomic bombs; Biological effects; cancer; canine; disease; dog; Dogs; Domestic animals; Fission weapons; Humans; Ionizing radiation; Isotopes; Literature reviews; Mammals; Nuclear Weapons; Occupational exposure; Occupational health; Original; Physiological effects; Radiation; Radiation effects; Radiation, Ionizing; radioactivity; Radioisotopes; Research Design; Survivors; cancer; canine; disease; radiation; dog; radioactivity
• ISSN: 1464-7931; 1469-185X; 1469-185X
• DOI: 10.1111/brv.12723

ABSTRACT Dogs were frequently employed as laboratory subjects during the era of atomic bomb testing (1950–1980), particularly in studies used to generate predictive data regarding the expected effects of accidental human occupational exposure to radiation. The bulk of these studies were only partly reported in the primary literature, despite providing vital information regarding the effects of radiation exposure on a model mammalian species. Herein we review this literature and summarize the biological effects in relation to the isotopes used and the method of radionuclide exposure. Overall, these studies demonstrate the wide range of developmental and physiological effects of exposure to radiation and radionuclides in a mid‐sized mammal.