Modifying Effects of Low-Intensity Extremely High-Frequency Electromagnetic Radiation on Content and Composition of Fatty Acids in Thymus of Mice Exposed to X-Rays.
Gapeyev AB, Aripovsky AV, Kulagina TP. · 2014
View Original AbstractLow-intensity 42.2 GHz radiation helped mice recover from X-ray damage to immune tissue, suggesting some EMF frequencies may be protective.
Plain English Summary
Scientists exposed mice to 42.2 GHz electromagnetic radiation to test whether it could protect against X-ray damage to immune tissue. The electromagnetic exposure helped restore normal tissue chemistry and weight in the thymus gland, suggesting certain frequencies might aid immune system recovery from radiation injury.
Why This Matters
This study presents an intriguing finding that challenges common assumptions about electromagnetic radiation effects. While most EMF research focuses on potential harm, this work demonstrates that specific frequencies at low intensities may have protective properties against ionizing radiation damage to immune tissue. The 42.2 GHz frequency used here is in the millimeter wave range, similar to what's used in some 5G applications, though at much lower power levels than typical wireless devices. What makes this particularly significant is the focus on the thymus, which produces T-cells crucial for immune function. The researchers found that EMF exposure helped restore normal cellular fatty acid composition and promoted tissue recovery after X-ray damage. This adds to a growing body of research suggesting that the biological effects of electromagnetic fields are highly dependent on specific parameters like frequency, intensity, and duration rather than following a simple 'more exposure equals more harm' model.
Exposure Details
- Power Density
- 0.1 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- 42.2 GHz
- Exposure Duration
- 20 minutes
Exposure Context
This study used 0.1 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 10Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 166.7Kx 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
The effects of extremely high-frequency electromagnetic radiation (EHF EMR) on thymus weight and its fatty acids (FA) content and FA composition in X-irradiated mice were studied to test the involvement of FA in possible protective effects of EHF EMR against ionizing radiation.
Mice were exposed to low-intensity pulse-modulated EHF EMR (42.2 GHz, 0.1 mW/cm(2), 20 min exposure,...
It was shown that after X-irradiation of mice the total FA content per mg of thymic tissue was signi...
Changes in the content and composition of PUFA in the early period after treatments as well as at the restoration of the thymus weight under the combined action of EHF EMR and X-rays indicate to an active participation of FA in the acceleration of post-radiation recovery of the thymus by EHF EMR exposure.
Show BibTeX
@article{ab_2014_modifying_effects_of_lowintensity_993,
author = {Gapeyev AB and Aripovsky AV and Kulagina TP.},
title = {Modifying Effects of Low-Intensity Extremely High-Frequency Electromagnetic Radiation on Content and Composition of Fatty Acids in Thymus of Mice Exposed to X-Rays.},
year = {2014},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25347148/},
}