The differential gene expression in rat lymphocytes after exposure to 2 Gy γ-rays

Objective To investigate the impacts of γ-ray radiation on gene expressions of peripheral blood lymphocytes in SD rats, and to screen differential expression genes and biological pathways closely related to radiation injury. Methods The differential gene expression of peripheral blood lymphocytes in SD rats was selected by microarray at 6 h after 2 Gy 60Co γ-ray exposure in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics analysis of the differentially expressed genes was performed by using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) databases. Real-time quantitative PCR was applied to verify the screen results of the microarray. Results Fifty-five genes with three times over-expressed level were screened out from the radiation groups both in vitro and in vivo and they were involved in 6 signaling pathways. There were two differentially expressed genes of microarray assay were verified by PCR assay. Conclusions Differential expressed genes in the peripheral blood lymphocytes of SD rats could be induced by γ-ray radiation and they cooperatively contributed to a variety of biological processes. Key words: γ-rays; Microarray; Lymphocyte; Differentially expressed genes