Abstract: Objective To observe and analyze the changes of the kidney, lung, and skeletal muscle morphology and the related indicators of oxidative stress in naked mole rats after total body irradiation with ⁶⁰Co γ-rays. Methods After 7 d and 14 d of total body radiation with ⁶⁰Co γ-rays at a one-time dose of 10 Gy, the kidney, lung and gastrocnemius muscle samples of naked mole rats were collected. The microstructures of the samples were observed under an optical microscope after HE staining. Indicators such as malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG) were detected with the corresponding biochemical test kits. Results Microscopic examination showed that there were no obvious pathological changes in the kidney, lung and skeletal muscle tissues of the naked mole rats after the designed irradiation. Biochemical examination showed that the content of MDA in kidney increased significantly after radiation (P<0.01), the content of GSH was significantly increased at first and then declined (P<0.05), and the contents of GSSG and T-AOC did not changed dramatically (P>0.05). The content of MDA in lung was significantly increased (P<0.05), and the contents of GSH, GSSG and T-AOC decreased at first and then increased over time (P<0.05). The content of MDA in skeletal muscle was significantly increased (P<0.01), while the contents of GSH and GSSH decreased firstly and then increased over time (P<0.01). The content of T-AOC decreased significantly on the 7th day after irradiation (P<0.01), and was maintained till the 14th day. Conclusion The kidney, lung and skeletal muscle of naked mole rats showed a certain degree of tolerance to ⁶⁰Co γ-ray radiation, and the specific tolerance mechanism is worthy of further study.

Key words: Naked mole rats, Kidney, Lung, Skeletal muscle, ⁶⁰Co γ-rays