Overproduction of free radical species in embryonal cells exposed to low intensity radiofrequency radiation.
Burlaka A, Tsybulin O, Sidorik E, Lukin S, Polishuk V, Tsehmistrenko S, Yakymenko I. · 2013
View Original AbstractCell phone radiation at levels 4,000 times below safety limits still caused DNA damage in developing embryos.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed developing quail embryos to extremely low-level cell phone radiation (900 MHz GSM) at power levels 4,000 times weaker than current safety limits. The exposure caused persistent overproduction of harmful free radicals and direct DNA damage in the developing embryos. The study demonstrates that even very weak radiofrequency radiation can trigger oxidative stress and genetic damage during critical developmental periods.
Why This Matters
This study delivers a critical finding that challenges the foundation of current EMF safety standards. The researchers used power density levels of just 0.25 µW/cm2, which is roughly 4,000 times lower than the FCC's specific absorption rate limits for cell phones. Yet even at these extraordinarily low levels, the radiation triggered significant biological damage including DNA breaks and overwhelming cellular antioxidant defenses. What makes this research particularly concerning is the focus on developing embryos, which represent one of the most vulnerable populations to environmental toxins. The science demonstrates that the developing organism's cellular machinery becomes disrupted at radiation levels we previously considered completely benign. The reality is that current safety standards are based on heating effects only, completely ignoring these non-thermal biological impacts that this Ukrainian research team documented so clearly.
Exposure Details
- Power Density
- 0.00025 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- GSM 900 MHz
Exposure Context
This study used 0.00025 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 25Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 416.7x above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 0.0006 μW/cm²
Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.
Where This Falls on the Concern Scale
Study Details
Our study aims to assess a production of initial free radical species, which lead to oxidative stress in the cell.
Embryos of Japanese quails were exposed in ovo to extremely low intensity RF-EMR of GSM 900 MHz (0.2...
The exposure resulted in a significant persistent overproduction of superoxide and nitrogen oxide in...
Exposure of developing quail embryos to extremely low intensity RF-EMR of GSM 900 MHz during at least one hundred and fifty-eight hours leads to a significant overproduction of free radicals/reactive oxygen species and oxidative damage of DNA in embryo cells. These oxidative changes may lead to pathologies up to oncogenic transformation of cells.
Show BibTeX
@article{a_2013_overproduction_of_free_radical_881,
author = {Burlaka A and Tsybulin O and Sidorik E and Lukin S and Polishuk V and Tsehmistrenko S and Yakymenko I.},
title = {Overproduction of free radical species in embryonal cells exposed to low intensity radiofrequency radiation.},
year = {2013},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24084462/},
}