Radon Solubility in Different Tissues after Short Term Exposure

Abstract

Radon, a naturally occurring radioactive noble gas, contributes significantly to lung cancer when incorporated from our natural environment. However, despite having unknown underlying mechanisms, radon is also used for therapeutic purposes to treat inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Data on the distribution and accumulation of radon in different tissues represent an important factor in dose determination for risk estimation, the explanation of potential therapeutic effects and the calculation of doses to different tissues using biokinetic dosimetry models. In this paper, radon’s solubility in bones, muscle tissue, adipose tissue, bone marrow, blood, a dissolved gelatin and oleic acid were determined. In analogy to current radon use in therapies, samples were exposed to radon gas for 1 h using two exposure protocols combined with established γ-spectroscopic measurements. Solubility data varied over two orders of magnitude, with the lowest values from the dissolved gelatin and muscle tissue; radon’s solubility in flat bones, blood and adipose tissue was one order of magnitude higher. The highest values for radon solubility were measured in bone marrow and oleic acid. The data for long bones as well as bone marrow varied significantly. The radon solubility in the blood suggested a radon distribution within the body that occurred via blood flow, reaching organs and tissues that were not in direct contact with radon gas during therapy. Tissues with similar compositions were expected to reveal similar radon solubilities; however, yellow bone marrow and adipose tissue showed differences in solubility even though their chemical composition is nearly the same—indicating that interactions on the microscopic scale between radon and the solvent might be important. We found high solubility in bone marrow—where sensitive hematopoietic cells are located—and in adipose tissue, where the biological impact needs to be further elucidated.