Ella B. Tyree (born c. 1920) was an American medical researcher. She worked in the mid-twentieth century investigating effects of

radiation poisoning Acute radiation syndrome (ARS), also known as radiation sickness or radiation poisoning, is a collection of health effects that are caused by being exposed to high amounts of ionizing radiation in a short period of time. Symptoms can start wit ...

in animals and potential treatments.

Education

Tyree attended

Spelman College Spelman College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia ...

. She trained in biology.

Career

In 1941,

Executive Order 8802 Executive Order 8802 was an Executive order (United States), executive order signed by President of the United States, President Franklin D. Roosevelt on June 25, 1941. It prohibited ethnic or racial discrimination in the nation's defense indust ...

was passed to prevent discriminatory hiring practices in defense and many Black Americans sought work in government projects related to the

Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development program undertaken during World War II to produce the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States in collaboration with the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the ...

. The type of position varied according to education and training, but there were scientists, technicians, construction workers, domestic workers and janitors. In the

Jim Crow era The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Ji ...

, these positions were an opportunity for higher, stable pay and for advancement. However, segregation and racist practices in housing were still common. Tyree became a laboratory technician at the

Metallurgical Laboratory The Metallurgical Laboratory (or Met Lab) was a scientific laboratory from 1942 to 1946 at the University of Chicago. It was established in February 1942 and became the Argonne National Laboratory in July 1946. The laboratory was established i ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

during the

. She worked in the Health Division and managed the animal farm which supplied the researchers with subjects for radiation experiments. In 1949, her team, led by Dr. Harvey M. Patt, reported that preemptively treating mice with

cysteine Cysteine (; symbol Cys or C) is a semiessential proteinogenic amino acid with the chemical formula, formula . The thiol side chain in cysteine enables the formation of Disulfide, disulfide bonds, and often participates in enzymatic reactions as ...

provided protection from normally-lethal radiation doses. They theorized that the

amino acid Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although over 500 amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the 22 α-amino acids incorporated into proteins. Only these 22 a ...

could prevent damage to cells exposed to

X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...

s. The treatment could be delivered orally or by injection in the hour preceding radiation exposure, and led to approximate survival rates of 80% compared to 20% when untreated. It did not help after exposure. In addition to the growing interest in radiation research from the perspective of

atomic weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear explo ...

, it was also seen as a potential aid in

cancer treatments Cancer treatments are a wide range of treatments available for the many different types of cancer, with each cancer type needing its own specific treatment. Treatments can include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormonal therapy, targe ...

to protect surrounding areas from radiation damage when administering high radiation doses.

Publications

* Nickson, James J; Lawrence, Walter; Rachwalsky, Irene; Tyree, Ella (1953)
"Roentgen rays and wound healing:II. Fractionated irradiation an experimental study"
''YMSY Surgery''. 34 (5): 859–862.

ISSN An International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) is an eight-digit to uniquely identify a periodical publication (periodical), such as a magazine. The ISSN is especially helpful in distinguishing between serials with the same title. ISSNs a ...

0039-6060.

OCLC OCLC, Inc. See also: is an American nonprofit cooperative organization "that provides shared technology services, original research, and community programs for its membership and the library community at large". It was founded in 1967 as the ...

br>4927667588
* Smith, Douglas E.; Tyree, Ella B. (1954-05-01)
"Influence of X-Irradiation Upon Body Weight and Food Consumption of the Rat"
''American Journal of Physiology. Legacy Content''. 177 (2): 251–260. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1954.177.2.251.

0002-9513. * Smith, Douglas E.; Tyree, Ella B. (1955-12-31)
"Influence of X-Irradiation Upon Water Consumption by the Rat"
''American Journal of Physiology. Legacy Content''. 184 (1): 127–133. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1955.184.1.127.

0002-9513. * Smith, Douglas E.; Tyree, Ella B. (1956)
"Attempts to Provide the Rat with Nutrition during Post-Irradiation Anorexia"
''Radiation Research''. 4 (5): 435–448. doi: 10.2307/3570265.

0033-7587. * Gunter, Shirley E.; Kohn, Henry I.; Tyree, Ella B.; Laughlin, John S.; Ovadia, Jacques; Shapiro, Gerald; Thompson, Patricia (1956)
"The Relative Biological Effectiveness of 180-Kevp and 22.5-Mevp X-Rays Determined from the Dose-Survival Curve of Saccharomyces cerevisiae"
''Radiation Research''. 4 (4): 326–338. doi: 10.2307/3570213.

0033-7587. * Kitagawa, Toshio; Glicksman, Arvin S.; Tyree, Ella B.; Nickson, James J. (1961)
"Radiation Effects on Skin and Subcutaneous Tissue: A Quantitative Study of Collagen Content: Modification with l-Triiodothyronine"
''Radiation Research''. 15 (6): 761–766. doi: 10.2307/3571112.

0033-7587. * Clapp, Paul; Tayao, Manuel S.; Tyree, Ella B.; Nickson, James J.; Clarkson, Bayard; Lawrence, Walter (1964-08-01)
"An experimental study of simultaneous irradiation and regional chemotherapeutic perfusion"
''Journal of Surgical Research''. 4 (8): 371–376. doi: 10.1016/S0022-4804(64)80086-X.

0022-4804.

PMID PubMed is an openly accessible, free database which includes primarily the MEDLINE database of references and abstracts on life sciences and biomedical topics. The United States National Library of Medicine (NLM) at the National Institutes of ...

br>14200441
* Clapp, Paul; Charyulu, K. K. N.; Tayao, Manuel S.; Tyree, Ella B.; Nickson, James J.; Lawrence, Walter (1965)
"Regional oxygenation and therapeutic response to irradiation. An experimental study"
''Cancer''. 18 (8): 927–936. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(196508)18:83.0.CO;2-K.

1097-0142. * Tyree, Ella B.; Glicksman, Arvin S.; Nickson, James J. (1966)
"Effect of L-Triiodothyronine on Radiation-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis in Dogs"
''Radiation Research''. 28 (1): 30–36. doi: 10.2307/3571925.

0033-7587.

Education

Career

Publications

References

See also