Cell Phone Radiation Research

Influence of dentures on SAR in the visible Chinese human head voxel phantom exposed to a mobile phone at 900 and 1800 MHz.

Yu D, Zhang R, Liu Q. · 2012

Monitoring dynamic reactions of red blood cells to UHF electromagnetic waves radiation using a novel micro-imaging technology.

Ruan P, Yong J, Shen H, Zheng X · 2012

At ultra-low power densities of 15 μW/cm(2) and 31 μW/cm(2) with exposure up to 30 minutes, the cells showed no obvious real-time responses. At higher power densities of 1 mW/cm(2) and 5 mW/cm(2), the cells exhibited significant changes in shape, size, and hemoglobin absorption spectrum parameters.

Fetal Radiofrequency Radiation Exposure From 800-1900 Mhz-Rated Cellular Telephones Affects Neurodevelopment and Behavior in Mice

Aldad TS, Gan G, Gao XB, Taylor HS · 2012

Researchers used a mouse model to examine whether in-utero radiofrequency exposure from cellular telephones affects adult behavior. Mice exposed in the womb were hyperactive and had impaired memory, as measured using the object recognition, light/dark box, and step-down assays. The exposed mice also had dose-responsive impaired glutamatergic synaptic transmission onto layer V pyramidal neurons of the prefrontal cortex.

Suppressive effect of electromagnetic field on analgesic activity of tramadol in rats

Bodera P et al. · 2012

Researchers studied how high-frequency electromagnetic fields affect pain perception and the pain-relieving activity of tramadol in rats. Exposures at 1500 MHz and modulated 1800 MHz were applied, and paw withdrawal latency to a thermal stimulus was measured before and after injections of either tramadol or a vehicle. EMF exposure alone produced no differences in pain perception compared with controls, but EMF at both frequencies transiently suppressed the analgesic effect of tramadol at 30 minutes after drug injection.

Effects of 900 MHz radiofrequency on corticosterone, emotional memory and neuroinflammation in middle-aged rats

Bouji M, Lecomte A, Hode Y, de Seze R, Villégier AS · 2012

Researchers assessed the effects of a single GSM exposure at 900 MHz with a specific absorption rate of 6 W/kg on young adult (6-week-old) and middle-aged (12-month-old) rats. The study measured brain IL-1β and IL-6, plasmatic corticosterone levels, and emotional memory. Results showed an IL-1β increase in the olfactory bulb and enhanced contextual emotional memory in GSM-exposed middle-aged rats, while plasmatic corticosterone levels increased in GSM-exposed young adults. Acute GSM exposure did not induce astrocyte activation, in contrast to previously published work.

Modulation of heat shock protein response in SH-SY5Y by mobile phone microwaves

Calabrò E et al. · 2012

Effects of electromagnetic radiation on spatial memory and synapses in rat hippocampal CA1.

Li Y, Shi C, Lu G, Xu Q, Liu S. · 2012

Researchers exposed 8-week-old Wistar rats to near-field radiation at 0.52–1.08 W/kg for 2 hours per day for 1 month. Behavioral changes were examined using the Morris water maze, and the irradiated rats exhibited impaired performance compared with the sham-irradiated rats. The morphological changes included mitochondrial degenerations, fewer synapses, and shorter postsynaptic densities in the radiated rats.

Glucose administration attenuates spatial memory deficits induced by chronic low-power-density microwave exposure

Lu Y et al. · 2012

Researchers exposed Wistar rats to 2.45 GHz pulsed microwave irradiation at a power density of 1 mW/cm2 for 3 hours per day for up to 30 days. Microwave exposure induced spatial learning and memory impairments in rats, and reduced hippocampal glucose uptake in the absence or presence of insulin. Blood glucose and insulin levels were not affected, but spatial memory deficits were reversed by systemic glucose treatment.

Calcium-binding proteins and GFAP immunoreactivity alterations in murine hippocampus after 1 month of exposure to 835 MHz radiofrequency at SAR values of 1.6 and 4.0 W/kg

Maskey D, Kim HJ, Kim HG, Kim MJ. · 2012

Researchers exposed mice to 835 MHz radiofrequency at SAR values of 1.6 W/kg and 4.0 W/kg for one month to study effects in the hippocampus. Compared with a sham control group, both exposed groups showed decreased calbindin D28-k and calretinin, loss of immunoreactive cells, and increased GFAP with hypertrophic cytoplasmic processes. The group exposed at 4.0 W/kg showed a more prominent decrease in calbindin and calretinin, and more prominent GFAP immunoreactivity, than the group exposed at 1.6 W/kg.

Microwave radiation induced oxidative stress, cognitive impairment and inflammation in brain of Fischer rats.

Megha K et al. · 2012

Researchers exposed male Fischer-344 rats to 900 MHz and 1800 MHz microwave radiation for 30 days at 2 hours per day to evaluate oxidative stress, cognitive impairment, and inflammation in the brain. Compared with sham-exposed animals, microwave-exposed rats showed significant impairment in cognitive function and oxidative stress in brain tissues. A significant increase in the cytokines IL-6 and TNF-alpha was also observed following microwave exposure.

Melatonin modulates wireless (2.45 GHz)-induced oxidative injury through TRPM2 and voltage gated Ca(2+) channels in brain and dorsal root ganglion in rat.

Nazıroğlu M et al. · 2012

Researchers divided rats into four groups: a cage control, a sham control, a group exposed to 2.45 GHz electromagnetic radiation, and a group exposed to the same radiation while also receiving melatonin. The radiation-exposed groups received that exposure for 60 minutes per day for 30 days, after which brain cortex and dorsal root ganglion samples and EEG recordings were collected. Lipid peroxidation, cell viability, and cytosolic calcium values in dorsal root ganglion neurons were higher in the radiation-only group than in the control groups. The melatonin-plus-radiation group showed lower EEG spike numbers and higher brain cortex vitamin E concentration compared with the radiation-only group.

Exposure to 2.45 GHz electromagnetic fields elicits an HSP-related stress response in rat hippocampus.

Yang XS, He GL, Hao YT, Xiao Y, Chen CH, Zhang GB, Yu ZP. · 2012

Researchers exposed adult male Sprague-Dawley rats to a 2.45 GHz electromagnetic field at a specific absorption rate of 6 W/kg, or to sham conditions, then examined gene and protein expression in the hippocampus. Of 2048 candidate genes examined, 23 were upregulated and 18 were downregulated. Two heat shock proteins, HSP27 and HSP70, stood out because their expression levels were increased in the rat hippocampus. The researchers concluded that their data provide direct evidence that exposure to electromagnetic fields elicits a stress response in the rat hippocampus.

Reactive Oxygen Species Formation and Apoptosis in Human Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cell Induced by 900 MHz Mobile Phone Radiation

Lu YS, Huang BT, Huang YX. · 2012

Researchers studied reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation and apoptosis in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) exposed to 900 MHz radiofrequency electromagnetic fields at a specific absorption rate of ~0.4 W/kg. ROS was found to play an important role in apoptosis when exposure lasted longer than two hours, with apoptosis induced through the mitochondrial pathway and mediated by activating ROS and caspase-3, and decreasing the mitochondrial potential. The imbalance between antioxidant defenses and ROS formation was associated with about 37% human PBMC death in eight hours.

Microwave radiation induced oxidative stress, cognitive impairment and inflammation in brain of Fischer rats

Megha K et al. · 2012

Researchers exposed rats to cell phone-level microwave radiation (900 MHz) for 2 hours daily over 30 days and found significant brain damage including memory problems, cellular stress, and inflammation. The exposure level was extremely low - about 1,000 times weaker than current safety limits - yet still caused measurable harm to brain tissue. This challenges the assumption that only high-intensity radiation poses health risks.

Calcium-binding proteins and GFAP immunoreactivity alterations in murine hippocampus after 1 month of exposure to 835MHz radiofrequency at SAR values of 1.6 and 4.0W/kg.

Maskey D, Kim HJ, Kim HG, Kim MJ · 2012

Researchers exposed mice to cell phone frequency radiation (835 MHz) for one month at power levels similar to heavy phone use. They found significant damage to brain cells in the hippocampus, including loss of protective calcium-binding proteins and signs of brain injury that worsened at higher exposure levels. This suggests that prolonged radiofrequency exposure may harm critical brain regions involved in memory and learning.

Electromagnetic fields at 2.45 GHz trigger changes in heat shock proteins 90 and 70 without altering apoptotic activity in rat thyroid gland.

Misa Agustiño MJ et al. · 2012

Fifty-four adult female Sprague-Dawley rats were individually exposed to 2.45 GHz radiation for 30 minutes in a GTEM cell at non-thermal SAR levels. Ninety minutes after exposure HSP-90 and HSP-70 decreased significantly at SAR values of 0.046±1.10 W/Kg and 0.104±5.10−3 W/Kg. Twenty-four hours after exposure HSP-90 had partially recovered and HSP-70 had recovered completely. There were few indications of lesions in the glandular structure and signs of apoptosis were negative in all radiated animals.

Modulation of heat shock protein response in SH-SY5Y by mobile phone microwaves.

Calabrò E et al. · 2012

Italian researchers exposed human brain-like cells to 1800 MHz microwave radiation (the same frequency used by GSM cell phones) for 2 and 4 hours. They found that this exposure altered the production of heat shock proteins - cellular stress indicators that help protect cells from damage. Specifically, one protective protein (Hsp20) decreased at both exposure times, while another stress protein (Hsp70) increased after 4 hours, suggesting the cells were responding to electromagnetic stress.

EHS subjects do not perceive RF EMF emitted from smart phones better than non-EHS subjects.

Kwon MK, Kim SK, Koo JM, Choi JY, Kim DW. · 2012

The study used a double-blind design with 17 EHS and 20 non-EHS volunteers exposed to real and sham RF-EMF sessions. There was no indication that EHS subjects perceive RF-EMFs better than non-EHS subjects. Exposure used a WCDMA module at 1950 MHz with an average power of 24 dBm and a specific absorption rate of 1.57 W/kg for 32 min.

Health Council of The Netherlands: no need to change from SAR to time-temperature relation in electromagnetic fields exposure limits

Unknown authors · 2011

The Health Council of the Netherlands examined whether exposure limits should shift from specific absorption rate to a maximum allowable temperature increase. The council evaluated this change across six criteria including consistency, applicability, and causality. The council concluded that changing the dosimetric quantity would not advance the debate on non-thermal effects from long-duration, low-intensity exposure. The council recommended keeping the current system of basic restrictions and reference levels expressed as SAR and in V/m or µT.

Health Council of The Netherlands: no need to change from SAR to time-temperature relation in electromagnetic fields exposure limits

Unknown authors · 2011

The Health Council of the Netherlands examined whether electromagnetic field exposure limits should shift from measuring SAR (specific absorption rate) to measuring temperature increases. They concluded that maintaining current SAR-based limits is preferable and that changing the measurement approach wouldn't resolve scientific debates about non-thermal EMF effects.

900-MHz microwave radiation promotes oxidation in rat brain

Kesari KK, Kumar S, Behari J. · 2011

Researchers exposed 35-day old Wistar rats to a mobile phone for 2 hours per day for 45 days at a specific absorption rate of 0.9 W/Kg. Animals were divided into a sham exposed group and an exposed group, each with 6 animals. The exposed group showed a significant decrease in glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase, and a significant increase in reactive oxygen species. The researchers concluded that these findings on biomarkers are clear indications of possible health implications.

900-MHz microwave radiation promotes oxidation in rat brain.

Kesari KK, Kumar S, Behari J. · 2011

Researchers exposed young rats to cell phone radiation (900 MHz) for two hours daily over 45 days. The study found increased harmful molecules and reduced protective antioxidants in brain tissue, suggesting cell phone radiation may cause oxidative stress that could contribute to neurological problems.

The effect of pulsed 900-MHz GSM mobile phone radiation on the acrosome reaction, head morphometry and zona binding of human spermatozoa.

Falzone N, Huyser C, Becker P, Leszczynski D, Franken DR. · 2011

Highly motile human spermatozoa were exposed for 1 hour to 900-MHz mobile phone radiation at a specific absorption rate of 2.0 W/kg and examined at various times after exposure. The radiation did not affect the sperm acrosome reaction, but significant reductions were found in sperm head area and acrosome percentage of the head area among exposed sperm compared with unexposed controls. The mean number of zona-bound sperm was 22.8 in exposed samples versus 31.8 in controls, a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05). The researchers concluded that these results could indicate a significant effect of RF-EMF on sperm fertilization potential.

900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency radiation induces oxidative stress on heart, lung, testis and liver tissues

Esmekaya MA, Ozer C, Seyhan N · 2011

Researchers exposed male Wistar albino rats to 900 MHz pulse-modulated RF radiation at a SAR of 1.20 W/kg for 20 minutes per day over three weeks to investigate oxidative damage in multiple tissues. MDA and NOx levels were significantly increased in liver, lung, testis, and heart tissues of the exposed group compared to sham and control groups, while GSH levels were significantly lower in exposed rat tissues. No significant difference was observed between the sham and control groups.

900 MHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency radiation induces oxidative stress on heart, lung, testis and liver tissues.

Esmekaya MA, Ozer C, Seyhan N. · 2011

Researchers exposed rats to cell phone radiation (900 MHz) for 20 minutes daily over three weeks. The radiation caused oxidative damage in the heart, lungs, liver, and testicles by increasing harmful molecules while depleting natural antioxidants, suggesting cellular harm from brief daily exposures.