Frogs Exposed To Radiation In Chernobyl Haven’t Seen Any Negative Impacts On Aging Or Stress Levels, According To A New Study
Frogs living in Chernobyl have been subjected to radioactive materials that still persist around the area. You would think the exposure would have negative effects on them, but the radiation levels have not impacted their age or their rate of aging.
In addition, no differences have been found in their levels of a stress hormone called corticosterone. The discovery adds a whole new layer to scientists’ understanding of how wildlife is affected by extreme environments.
The research was led by experts from the University of Oviedo and the Doñana Biological Station-CSIC. It is the first time that the long-term effects of radiation on the aging of Chernobyl creatures have been analyzed.
The study is important to accurately measure the current impact of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster on wildlife. Nearly four decades ago, a catastrophic explosion at reactor 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in northern Ukraine occurred.
Since then, the radiation levels in the surrounding areas have dropped significantly. It is estimated that less than 10 percent of the radiation unleashed during the accident remains. Within just a few months of the accident, some of the most dangerous isotopes, like iodine, disappeared.
Still, the landscape is the most radioactive on the planet and will not be habitable for humans for at least 20,000 years.
The team of researchers has been working in Chernobyl since 2016, investigating the state of animal populations in the region. They focused on amphibians, particularly the eastern frog (Hyla orientalis).
Previous research has not identified any effects of radiation exposure on this species. Now, the team has examined the effects of radiation on the age and rate of aging of these amphibians to assess the long-term health impacts throughout their lives.
The fieldwork was conducted in Ukraine between 2016 and 2018. The team sampled populations of the frogs along areas contaminated with radioactive materials. They captured a total of more than 200 male eastern St. Anthony’s frogs from 14 locations.
constantincornel – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual frog
“In all the frogs, we calculated the level of radiation absorbed based on the environmental radiation and the cesium content in their muscles and strontium in their bones. This has been one of the most precise assessments of absorbed radiation carried out on a vertebrate in Chernobyl,” said Pablo Burraco, a researcher at the Doñana Biological Station.
It is possible to measure the age of an amphibian individual by counting the growth lines of their bones. These lines form every year in a way that is similar to tree rings.
The researchers also used telomeres, which are DNA sequences located at the end of chromosomes, to examine the rate of aging.
Overall, the results of the study revealed that the radiation levels at Chernobyl were not high enough to cause chronic damage to the frogs living at the site.
The study was published in the journal Biology Letters.
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