The experiments on mice exposed to radiation (6.5 Gy, LD 80/30) discov
ered that human recombinant inteleukin-1 beta after administration on
postradiation hour 1-3 increased the animals' survival by 40-70%. Inte
rleukin-1 beta reduced leukopenia and enhanced the recovery of bone ma
rrow cell elements. The use of the preparation as an early pathogeneti
c treatment of irradiation damage holds promise.