THE EFFECT OF GAMMA-IRRADIATION ON COLLAGEN FIBRIL STRUCTURE

The structure of mouse skin collagen fibrils treated with 500 rad gamma irradiation-was studied by electron microscopy. Examination of specimens after 1, 4 and 8 weeks of treatment revealed collagen fibrils consistently larger in diameter than those from normal specimens with the majority of irradiated fibrils measuring 110-138 nm, as opposed to 62-84 nm in the control. No marked differences in cross-linking were detected between irradiated and control reconstituted type I or type III collagen, either by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis or by thermal stability measurements. Micron