Study of Biological Effects of Fast Neutrons (2-14 MeV) Using Monte Carlo Method on DNA Atomic Model

This study investigates the direct effect of fast neutrons with the energy ranging from 2MeV to 14MeV, and calculates the single-strand break and double-strand break on the Deoxyribon Nucleic Acid (DNA) atomic structure, using Monte Carlo method. To this end, Geant4 toolkit and its low energy extension, known as Geant4-DNA, were used. The DNA atomic structure extracted from the Protein data bank and water was selected as a substance for the biological matter. The step length in low energy extension works is in the range of nanometer and less. On the other hand, the average free paths of neutrons in the energy rang from 2MeV to 14MeV was obtained in the unit of centimeters. Under these circumstances, running the program using a computing system will also be lengthy. As a result, the spectrum of secondary particles from neutron interactions with the atoms of water molecules was targeted. The Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) and the theoretical calculation were used to extract secondary particle spectra. This method reduces the execution time to more than about one-tenth. Then, the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) of the neutrons were also simulated using 60Co γ-rays as the reference quality. The model succeeded in reproducing the general behavior of RBE as a function of neutron energy, which agrees well with the data reported in the literature.