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A rapid cosmic-ray increase in BC 3372-3371 from ancient buried tree rings in China.

ABSTRACT: Cosmic rays interact with the Earth's atmosphere to produce ¹⁴C, which can be absorbed by trees. Therefore, rapid increases of ¹⁴C in tree rings can be used to probe previous cosmic-ray events. By this method, three ¹⁴C rapidly increasing events have been found. Plausible causes of these events include large solar proton events, supernovae, or short gamma-ray bursts. However, due to the lack of measurements of ¹⁴C by year, the occurrence frequency of such ¹⁴C rapidly increasing events is poorly known. In addition, rapid increases may be hidden in the IntCal13 data with five-year resolution. Here we report the result of ¹⁴C measurements using an ancient buried tree during the period between BC 3388 and 3358. We found a rapid increase of about 9‰ in the ¹⁴C content from BC 3372 to BC 3371. We suggest that this event could originate from a large solar proton event.

SUBMITTER: Wang FY

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5684315 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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A rapid cosmic-ray increase in BC 3372-3371 from ancient buried tree rings in China.

Wang F Y FY Yu H H Zou Y C YC Dai Z G ZG Cheng K S KS

Nature communications 20171114 1

Cosmic rays interact with the Earth's atmosphere to produce 14C, which can be absorbed by trees. Therefore, rapid increases of 14C in tree rings can be used to probe previous cosmic-ray events. By this method, three 14C rapidly increasing events have been found. Plausible causes of these events include large solar proton events, supernovae, or short gamma-ray bursts. However, due to the lack of measurements of 14C by year, the occurrence frequency of s ...[more]

PMID: 29133840

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Project description:Robust predictive models are essential to manage the risk of radiation-induced carcinogenesis. Chronic exposure to cosmic rays in the context of the complex deep space environment may place astronauts at high cancer risk. To estimate this risk, it is critical to understand how radiation-induced cellular stress impacts cell fate decisions and how this in turn alters the risk of carcinogenesis. Exposure to the heavy ion component of cosmic rays triggers a multitude of cellular changes, depending on the rate of exposure, the type of damage incurred and individual susceptibility. Heterogeneity in dose, dose rate, radiation quality, energy and particle flux contribute to the complexity of risk assessment. To unravel the impact of each of these factors, it is critical to identify sensitive biomarkers that can serve as inputs for robust modeling of individual risk of cancer or other long-term health consequences of exposure. Limitations in sensitivity of biomarkers to dose and dose rate, and the complexity of longitudinal monitoring, are some of the factors that increase uncertainties in the output from risk prediction models. Here, we critically evaluate candidate early and late biomarkers of radiation exposure and discuss their usefulness in predicting cell fate decisions. Some of the biomarkers we have reviewed include complex clustered DNA damage, persistent DNA repair foci, reactive oxygen species, chromosome aberrations and inflammation. Other biomarkers discussed, often assayed for at longer points post exposure, include mutations, chromosome aberrations, reactive oxygen species and telomere length changes. We discuss the relationship of biomarkers to different potential cell fates, including proliferation, apoptosis, senescence, and loss of stemness, which can propagate genomic instability and alter tissue composition and the underlying mRNA signatures that contribute to cell fate decisions. Our goal is to highlight factors that are important in choosing biomarkers and to evaluate the potential for biomarkers to inform models of post exposure cancer risk. Because cellular stress response pathways to space radiation and environmental carcinogens share common nodes, biomarker-driven risk models may be broadly applicable for estimating risks for other carcinogens.

Dataset Information

A rapid cosmic-ray increase in BC 3372-3371 from ancient buried tree rings in China.

Publications

A rapid cosmic-ray increase in BC 3372-3371 from ancient buried tree rings in China.

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