Decades of study on the biological effects of high-energy heavy charged particles all but came to a halt in the U.S. three years ago when Berkeley Lab, which invented nuclear medicine half a century ago, shut down its Bevalac accelerator.
Although other facilities took up some of the slack when funding ended for the Bevalac, its loss was a blow to charged-particle radiation research. Now, thanks in part to the efforts of the Engineering and Life Sciences divisions, much of what was accomplished in turning the Bevalac into one of the world's finest facilities for heavy-ion radiation biology (see accompanying article) has been transferred to a new facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory.
Life Sciences physicist Jack Miller says creating the new Brookhaven research facility was a two-year labor of love for Bevalac veterans who gave many hours of their own time to the project. Brookhaven's Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS) had never been used for radiobiology, and to do so presented technical challenges similar to those encountered at the Bevalac.
Computer and electronic systems and monitoring devices developed for the Bevalac were refurbished or rebuilt before being moved to Brookhaven. These systems monitor the radiation dose delivered to experimental targets as well as the uniformity and composition of the particle beam, and are critical to the success of accelerator-based biology experiments. Engineering's R.P. Singh was responsible for the software, while Mark Nyman handled much of the electronics engineering. Bernhard Ludewigt of Life Sciences was liaison between biologists and accelerator specialists.
Miller and Life Sciences physicists Lawrence Heilbronn, Cary Zeitlin and Ken Frankel were responsible for installing and running the dosimetry system at the AGS, and Life Sciences biologists Amy Kronenberg and Priscilla Cooper helped design the facility for staging biological samples.
Miller says that the effort to transfer know-how and hardware to Brookhaven really made him appreciate the breadth of resources available at Berkeley Lab. "In addition to engineers and scientists," he said, "we needed computer technicians, electronics specialists, riggers, carpenters and the shipping department, some times on pretty short notice. Everyone came through."
He also praised the staff at Brookhaven for their efforts. "The AGS is optimized for high energy nuclear physics. For radiobiology, the beam had to be dialed down to about 1 GeV/nucleon, well below its comfort zone. This is like getting an internal combustion engine to idle at 20 rpm rather than 700. The accelerator people called this `running in the mud,' but they made it work very well."
The first AGS radiobiology run, using beams of iron ions, took place in October. Forty-one scientists from 12 institutions took part in the highly successful run. Participating LSD researchers included Kronenberg (mutagenesis in human and rodent cells); Cooper and Bjorn Rydberg (DNA damage and repair in human and rodent cells); Mary Helen Barcellos-Hoff (epithelial cell transformation); and Miller (heavy ion fragmentation related to astronaut exposures and shielding).
CAPTION: Mark Nyman and and R.P. Singh (left and right) of Engineering, and Bernhard Ludewigt of Life Sciences were among the many Bevalac veterans who worked long hours over two years to transfer the radiobiology program from the Bevalac to Brookhaven National Laboratory. Photo by Don Fike
Life Sciences Division researchers, sponsored by DOE, NASA and others, will be major users of the new Brookhaven facility (see main article). Berkeley Lab, in collaboration with Colorado State University, is a NASA Specialized Center of Research and Training (NSCORT) in radiation biology, with a mandate to train some of the next generation of radiation scientists.
Life Sciences physicist Jack Miller says research in this field has particular importance to two groups of people--astronauts and cancer patients. In terms of biological effects, heavy ions are a two-sided coin. While posing a hazard to astronauts, these highly energetic charged particles provide hope to cancer patients.
"We have a lot to learn about the biological effects of densely ionizing radiation such as cosmic ray heavy ions," Miller says. "The knowledge we gain will not only help protect astronauts but will also improve our understanding of both the basic biology and the therapeutic uses of these particles."
To date, astronauts have not traveled much beyond the safety of the earth's magnetic field. Near Earth, heavy ions are of relatively little concern. However, they may turn out to be a major hazard on interplanetary missions.
For instance, it has been estimated that during a three-year mission to Mars, up to one third of an astronaut's nuclei would be "traversed" by a heavy ion. The very long lead times needed for planning a return trip to the moon or a voyage to Mars dictate that research into the consequences of this exposure be conducted now.
Heavy ions can also be harnessed to attack cancerous tissue. Charged particle radiotherapy--the targeting of a beam of heavy ions on a tumor--was pioneered at this Laboratory and at the Harvard cyclotron, and has spread to facilities in more than 10 countries.
Like x-rays, charged particles are able to pass through tissue. However, whereas x-rays begin to give up their energy as soon as they encounter tissue, charged particles deposit almost all of their energy or radiation dose where they stop. This stopping point can be precisely manipulated to coincide with the location of a tumor through the use of a beam delivery system developed at the Bevalac.
Duster, who also spoke last year at the Lab, has served on the Committee on Social and Ethical Impacts of Advances in Biomedicine, Institute of Medicine, and is currently a member of the National Advisory Council for Human Genome Research. He is also vice chair of the advisory committee to the National Center for Human Genome Research, on Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues.
He is the recipient of a number of research fellowships, and has published many books and monographs, including one on the social implications of the new technologies in molecular biology.
The teachers are participating in the South Africa Project, a team effort between CSEE's Bay Area Science and Technology Education Collaboration (BASTEC) and the Berkeley-Oukasie Sister Community Project. The project has been designed to serve as a model for linkages between South African and U.S. science faculties.
While in the Bay Area, the teachers will be updated on cutting-edge science and science education opportunities, and trained to conduct peer workshops. After leaving the Bay Area, they plan to spend three days in Washington, D.C.
The potluck is sponsored by the Berkeley-Oukasie Sister Community Project and BASTEC. Call 849-1890 for more information.
CAPTION: Associate Director-at-Large Glenn Seaborg (center) met with six South African math and science teachers on their first day at the Lab, Feb. 20. The teachers (from left), Doreen Khutoane, Zacharia Makhoba, Glancinah Mateta Ngakane, Susan Patricia Vermaak, Colin Peter Malao, and Dilepkumar Sukha Kala all hail from the South African township of Oukasie. Photo by Don Fike
MSAP is one of UC's most successful and highly recognized management development efforts. The 4-day in-residence program is scheduled for June 4-7 at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove. PSAP will target the upper administrative services levels and is promising to be just as successful. It will be held June 11-14 at the Santa Sabina Center in San Rafael. It is a 3-1/2-day in-residence program.
If you are interested in applying for MSAP or PSAP, contact your division administrator for an application packet. Program information and applications will also be available via the Lab's web site. Go to the Employee Development & Training home page at http://www.lbl.gov/Workplace/EDT or the Work Force Diversity home page at http://www.lbl.gov/Workplace/WFDO/Home.html All completed applications should be mailed to Christa Brothers at M.S. 51-208 by March 8.
For more information, contact Christa Brothers at X4238 or [email protected]
The cost of disposing of Berkeley Lab's medical waste went down last year, thanks to some ingenuity on the part of the EH&S and Life Sciences divisions.
By consolidating adjacent sites where medical waste is picked up, costs were cut from $30,000 in 1994 to $22,000 in 1995, even though the total amount of medical waste increased.
The impetus to improve the system came with a change in contractors in early 1995. The new contractor, BFI Medical Waste Systems, had a different pricing schedule, charging less per pound of waste picked up, but having a higher minimum price for small loads.
"It became much more cost effective for the Lab to combine its pick-up sites," said Gale Moline of EH&S.
Medical waste on the Hill is generally made up of any equipment that comes in contact with blood or other potentially biohazardous material, such as test tubes, pipettes, filters, and tissue culture supplies. Such waste is stored in special red bags in laboratories and picked up at designated locations.
Working with Life Sciences, which generates most of the medical waste, Moline was able to cut the 13 pick-up sites down to eight. This involved installing a locker outside of Bldg. 70A for waste barrels, and combining sites in Life Sciences-heavy areas such as Donner.
Even with consolidation of waste bags, Moline says, the system allows backtracking of individual waste containers to original locations because the new waste contractor has implemented a bar-code system of identifying bags.
Moline says the savings from the simple streamlining should also mean less paperwork.
Contributing to the project from Life Sciences were Stacy Gauny and Mark McCall. n
7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., near Bldg. 77.
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CASTRO VALLEY, 2 bdrms avail. in home, one w/pvt bth, laundry & kitchen privs., short/long term, rent + dep. negot. Marek, X5029, 582-5867
BERKELEY HILLS, Euclid/Cedar, 5 blks from UCB, furn. rm in pvt home, kitchen privs., washer/dryer, deck, S.F. & Golden Gate views, nr trans., shops, tennis cts. & Rose Garden, non-smoking, no pets, $450/mo. + util. 548-1287
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WANTED: furn. house/apt for visiting teacher & wife (no children), 6/23-8/23, East or No. Bay Area, willing to commute to Berkeley Lab; also willing to exchange home nr Boston (Marblehead, MA). Karin, X5513, Michael, (617) 631-6860
WANTED: 2-bdrm house in safe area for couple, Berkeley Lab researchers, non-smokers, no pets, sign long lease for right house, $800-$1K/mo. range. Katie/Scott, X4132, 559-8071