The Internal Dose Assessment of Ingested Radon using a PBPK Model for Repeated Oral Exposures

음용수를 통한 라돈의 반복섭취시 동적 약리학모델을 활용한 체내거동 평가

A daily newspaper in Korea addressed an controversial issue recently that the concentration of radon measured from the groundwater in Taejon was found out a relatively high level. The cancer risk arising from ingestion of such radon should be derived from calculation of the dose absorbed by the tissues at risk. The study performed by the National Research Council in United States confirmed that the use of a PBPK model for the ingested radon could provide the useful information regarding the distribution of radon among the organs of the body. This study presents an approach for the internal dose assessment of ingested radon for this case. At first, the study develops a PBPK model for ingested radon. However, the important issue is how to simulate a more realistic situation using the model associated with repeated oral doses rather than a single oral dose. The simulations are performed for repeated oral exposures per 8-hour interval using the PBPK model for a male adult. The concentration and cumulative value of radon concentration are calculated and analyzed for lung tissue and adipose group, respectively. The results could be used for the realistic prediction of the internal dose of radon in the human body for repeated oral exposures.