Acute tissue injury and subsequent inflammation, including tissue edema and erythema, can be caused by sufficiently high levels of exposure to γ radiation.
The mechanism of this tissue injury is related to the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) which chemically alter biological molecules and cell physiology. Cell membrane lipids are vulnerable to ROI-mediated lipid peroxidation that then leads to many of the acute tissue effects.
Analysis of radiation injury is among ESR’s expertise.