Ecological Impacts of Ionizing Radiation on Organisms

Ionizing radiation, arising from natural background sources, medical and industrial activities, and nuclear accidents, exerts both acute and chronic effects on wildlife, plants and microorganisms. At the cellular level, it induces DNA strand breaks, oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction, which can translate into mutations, impaired reproduction and altered growth. Community and ecosystem responses include shifts in species composition, changes in trophic interactions and reductions in biodiversity. Long-term exposure in contaminated landscapes such as Chernobyl and Fukushima has revealed not only direct radiogenic damage but also adaptive responses, including enhanced antioxidant production. Understanding these processes is critical for environmental protection, risk assessment and the management of contaminated sites worldwide.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Studies of Japanese biota following the Fukushima Daiichi accident have provided direct evidence of radiation-induced morphological and physiological changes. Conifer populations in contaminated zones exhibit increased frequencies of leader-shoot deletions and subcellular abnormalities in needles, correlating with local radionuclide levels and emerging a year after the event. Simultaneously, field investigations of wild mice in the same region have documented internal radiocesium burdens exceeding 4 000 Bq kg–1 without observable increases in spermatogenic cell apoptosis or sperm malformations, suggesting that, despite high uptake, key reproductive processes may remain resilient under chronic exposure.

Ecological Impacts of Ionizing Radiation on Organisms publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in ecological impacts of ionizing radiation on organisms across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Ionizing radiation: High-energy particles or waves that remove electrons from atoms, causing molecular and cellular damage.

Oxidative stress: An imbalance between reactive oxygen species production and antioxidant defences, leading to biomolecular injury.

Adverse outcome pathway (AOP): A conceptual framework linking a molecular initiating event to an adverse ecological effect through sequential key events.

Benchmark dose (BMD): A quantitative point of departure derived from dose–response data corresponding to a predefined level of effect.

Bioaccumulation: The progressive concentration of substances, such as radionuclides, in an organism’s tissues over time.

References

1. Multiomics Point of Departure (moPOD) Modeling Supports an Adverse Outcome Pathway Network for Ionizing Radiation. Environmental Science and Technology (2023).
2. Long term effects of ionising radiation in the Chernobyl Exclusion zone on DNA integrity and chemical defence systems of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). The Science of The Total Environment (2023).
3. Empirical evidence that mean soil contaminant concentration is not a conservative indicator of external exposure to wildlife. Ecological Indicators (2023).
4. Morphological defects in native Japanese fir trees around the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Scientific Reports (2015).
5. Effects of environmental radiation on testes and spermatogenesis in wild large Japanese field mice (Apodemus speciosus) from Fukushima. Scientific Reports (2016).