Physiological changes leading to anhydrobiosis improve radiation tolerance in larvae

Watanabe, Masahiko*; Nakahara, Yuichi*; Sakashita, Tetsuya; Kikawada, Takahiro*; Fujita, Akihiko*; Hamada, Nobuyuki*; Horikawa, Daiki*; Wada, Seiichi*; Kobayashi, Yasuhiko; Okuda, Takashi*

We examined effects of high-LET radiation on 4 kinds of larvae: (1) normal hydrated (intact) larva, (2) intermediates between the anhydrobiotic and normal hydrated state, (3) almost completely dehydrated (anhydrobiotic) larvae, and (4) immediately-rehydrated larvae that are assumed to have a similar molecular profile to anhydrobiotic larvae. The intermediates and immediately-rehydrated larvae survived longer after high-LET radiation than intact larvae, indicating that radiation tolerance could be enhanced even in hydrated larvae. Physiological changes toward anhydrobiosis, e.g. accumulation of protectants or increasing damage repair capacity, correlate with improved radiation tolerance in hydrated larvae. In addition, almost complete desiccation further enhanced radiation tolerance, possibly in a different way from the hydrated larvae.