Regeneration of intestinal mucosa after irradiation

Radiobiological techniques may be used for determining the size of a population of cells capable of indefinite proliferation (clonogenic cells). In normal “steady-state” proliferative tissues, such as intestinal mucosa, clonogenic cell numbers remain constant through the continuous loss of cells. In order for a depleted clonogenic population to regrow to normal, cell loss must be reduced temporarily. The time-sequence for the switching off and on of cell loss from the intestinal mucosa is reported here and could form a temporal framework for more detailed studies of the mechanisms that control cell loss, and therefore growth.