Direct damage from radiation may be passed to neighboring cells

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:12:00 -0400

Cells communicate, organize, share resources, and form direct connections with one another. They also are affected by damage to their neighbors. Research led by John Little of the Harvard School of Public Health shows that cells hit by radiation can send signals to neighboring cells that result in DNA damage. These findings challenge the long-held assumption that radiation harms cells only by direct contact, suggesting that radiation's biological effects are more complex than previously thought.

Industrial disasters sparked field of environmental health

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:10:22 -0400

Two large, unnatural disasters helped to create the impetus for the field of environmental health to grow in scope. But before there was a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and before the National Institutes of Health (NIH) included environmental health, there was the Kresge Center for Environmental Health at Harvard's School of Public Health. Beginning in 1958, the center brought together medical and physical scientists and engineers to investigate the manmade health problems of the 20th century. From a classic focus on industrial workplaces, the Kresge Center has seen environmental health grow to incorporate every part of our natural and constructed habitats.

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Direct damage from radiation may be passed to neighboring cells

Industrial disasters sparked field of environmental health