Microbiology Radiation

Radiation microbiology

Radiation microbiology is a branch of microbiology that studies the effect of ionizing radiation on microorganisms.

The main objectives of radiation microbiology are:

1. Study of the effect of ionizing radiation on the viability, mutagenesis, growth and reproduction of microorganisms.

2. Studying the mechanisms of radioresistance of microbes and developing methods for increasing or weakening it.

3. Study of the possibility of using irradiated microorganisms in various fields of science and technology.

4. Development of methods for radiation sterilization and preservation of food products, medical materials and other objects using microorganisms.

5. Study of the distribution and activity of microorganisms in conditions of increased radiation, for example, in areas of radioactive contamination.

Thus, radiation microbiology allows us to better understand the biology of microbes and the mechanisms of their interaction with ionizing radiation, as well as use this knowledge in practice.

Microbiology, a section of medicine that studies the effects of ionizing radiation on microorganisms, is of great importance for modern science and technology, since microorganisms are important sources of pathogens of various infectious diseases of humans and animals; they are used in some biological processes, in particular for the production of antibiotics, as well as participate in the carbon cycle.

Microbiology, radiation and biochemistry have been and remain one of the main directions in the study of the principles and mechanisms of interaction of biological systems with factors of physical nature. Currently, in microbiology, a large-scale approach is increasingly being realized and developed, providing for the consideration of biological objects in inextricable connection with the entire environment, which is represented by technical and technological systems. However, the transition from microbiological research methods to the study of the influence on biological objects and their systems of direct exposure to factors of artificial origin is associated with the use of complex methods - radiological, electrophysical, physical, laser, chemical, biological, etc. Radiation-induced changes in the biological structures and functions of living organisms are not fundamentally new in biology. They are more characteristic, widespread and varied than any other. The uniqueness of radiation lies in the fact that with a relatively short exposure time it causes profound irreversible, structural, functional and morphological changes in a living cell. There are a number of reasons for this: - high ionization energy and high penetrating power; - extremely strong dose dependence; - variability of biological effects of radiation.

The concept of biological impact should reflect ideas about the occurrence, nature, and essence of damage to biological systems. Currently, the effects of external factors are divided according to the nature and type of structural changes into chemical, physical and combined forms. For microbiologists, of the greatest interest are physical factors, especially those representing electromagnetic fields and radiation (electromagnetic waves). However, such forms of influence as thermal, heat and energy factors have an effect in some cases