April 1, 2025
By Chloe Arrington

Greeshma Agasthya and Shaheen Dewji, assistant professors in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering's Nuclear and Radiological Engineering and Medical Physics program, have been named sub-awardees by the Department of Energy (DOE) in an initiative dedicated to integrated biological and computational low-dose radiation research.

The DOE is funding 14 projects with a total of $19.5 million over the next three years. These projects will use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to explore how low-dose radiation affects human health by studying cellular and molecular responses and identifying biological markers of radiation effects. The initial projects will build experimental datasets from different cell types, which will serve as training data for AI/ML models.

Agasthya's project, Bridging the Gap Between Low-Dose Exposures and Emergent Physiology Using Integrative Modeling and Experimentation from Epigenome to Cell Phenotype, has been awarded a total of $1 million, with $290,000 allocated to Agasthya's research. In collaboration with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the project aims to experimentally compare the effects of low-dose X-rays and gamma radiation exposures with the impact of low-dose alpha particle exposures at a subcellular scale and develop computational models to capture these differences in silico. 

With limited data on low-dose and low-dose-rate radiation health effects, the linear no-threshold (LNT) model—which assumes that radiation harm increases linearly with exposure and that zero harm exists only at zero exposure—has been central to radiation protection regulations for decades.

"The success of this project will enable us to gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental biological changes that result from chronic low-dose radiation exposure from various sources," said Agasthya. 

The research will also compare the findings against predictions from the LNT model, which could lead to new insights for risk assessment and radiation safety standards.

Dewji’s project, Combined Dosimetric and Toxicological Contributions to Bone Marrow Response in Mice from Low-Dose Strontium Exposure Using AI-Driven Mouse Model and Digital Twins, has received $1.5 million in funding. Led by the University of Florida, and in collaboration with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Dewji’s work will focus on AI-driven approaches to biokinetic modeling and computational fluid-particle dynamics, enabling more precise assessments of how radionuclides are deposited, transported, and retained in biological systems. This work will improve the ability to model internal emitters and predict their biological impact.

The goal is to address one of the biggest challenges in low-dose radiation science, distinguishing the biological effects of radiation exposure from those caused by chemical toxicity. By studying both radiological (hot) and non-radiological (cold) strontium, the team is separating radiation-specific damage from broader toxicological effects.

“This research has never been done at this level of detail,” said Dewji. "This project is revolutionizing how we study radiation exposure at low doses. For the first time, we are using AI to untangle radiation effects from chemical toxicity in a way that was previously impossible, bringing unprecedented precision to internal dose assessment. The ability to computationally dissect these interactions will transform our understanding of low-dose radiation risks and refine the very models used to protect human health.”

This work builds on research priorities outlined in the National Academies’ Low Dose Radiation Research Strategy report, which Dewji co-authored, and ensures that cutting-edge computational science is leading the way in modern radiation biology and dosimetry.

About the Projects

The 14 projects and principal investigators are from Columbia University, Georgetown University, Hauptman Woodward Medical Research Institute Inc. (an independent research facility affiliated with the University at Buffalo), the Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences (a member of the Claremont Colleges), Northwestern University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Stanford University, University of Florida, University of Nevada–Las Vegas, University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill, University of Tennessee, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, University of Washington, and University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.