| Institution: | 1. Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;2. Department of Chemistry, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;3. National Research Center for Protozoa Diseases, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido, Japan;4. Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata, Niigata, Japan;5. Miyagi University, School of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Miyagi, Japan;6. Graduate School of Dentistry, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;7. Tohoku University Hospital, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;8. Department of Pathology, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;9. Hitachi Solutions East Japan, Ltd, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan;10. Center for the Advancement of Higher Education, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan |
| Abstract: | The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP) released a large amount of radioactive substances into the environment. Furthermore, beef contaminated with radioactive cesium above the 500 Bq/kg safety standard was circulated in the food chain in 2011. Japanese consumers remain concerned about the safety of radioactively contaminated food. In our previous study, we detected a linear correlation between radioactive cesium (137Cs) activity in blood and muscle around 500 to 2500 Bq/kg in cattle. However, it was unclear whether the correlation was maintained at a lower radioactivity close to the current safety standard of 100 Bq/kg. In this study, we evaluated 17 cattle in the FNPP evacuation zone that had a 137Cs blood level less than 10 Bq/kg. The results showed a linear correlation between blood 137Cs and muscle 137Cs (Y = 28.0X, R2 = 0.590) at low radioactivity concentration, indicating that cesium radioactivity in the muscle can be estimated from blood radioactivity. This technique would be useful in detecting high‐risk cattle before they enter the market, and will contribute to food safety. |
