ALPHA RADIATION

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does alpha radiation mean? 

• ALPHA RADIATION (noun)
  The noun ALPHA RADIATION has 1 sense:

1. the radiation of alpha particles during radioactive decay

  Familiarity information: ALPHA RADIATION used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ALPHA RADIATION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The radiation of alpha particles during radioactive decay

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Synonyms:

alpha radiation; alpha ray

Hypernyms ("alpha radiation" is a kind of...):

ionizing radiation (high-energy radiation capable of producing ionization in substances through which it passes)

corpuscular radiation; particulate radiation (a stream of atomic or subatomic particles that may be charged positively (e.g. alpha particles) or negatively (e.g. beta particles) or not at all (e.g. neutrons))

 Context examples 

The monoclonal antibody moiety of actinium Ac 225 lintuzumab specifically binds to the cell surface antigen CD33 antigen, delivering a cytotoxic dose of alpha radiation to cells expressing CD33.

(Actinium Ac 225 Lintuzumab, NCI Thesaurus)

Upon administration, the antibody moiety of lead Pb 212 TCMC-trastuzumab binds with high affinity to the extracellular domain of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2); after internalization, the radioisotope moiety delivers a cytotoxic dose of alpha radiation to the HER2-expressing tumor cells.

(Lead Pb 212 TCMC-trastuzumab, NCI Thesaurus)