Fifty Hertz electromagnetic field exposure stimulates secretion of beta-amyloid peptide in cultured human neuroglioma.
Del Giudice E, Facchinetti F, Nofrate V, Boccaccio P, Minelli T, Dam M, Leon A, Moschini G. · 2007
View Original AbstractPower-frequency EMF exposure increased Alzheimer's-linked protein production in human brain cells, providing biological evidence for epidemiological findings.
Plain English Summary
Italian researchers exposed human brain cells to 50 Hz electromagnetic fields from power lines and found significantly increased production of beta-amyloid proteins, the toxic clumps linked to Alzheimer's disease. This laboratory finding suggests a potential biological mechanism connecting household electricity exposure to Alzheimer's risk.
Why This Matters
This research provides crucial mechanistic evidence for something epidemiological studies have suggested for years: that occupational exposure to power-frequency electromagnetic fields may increase Alzheimer's disease risk. The science demonstrates that 50 Hz EMF exposure directly stimulates production of beta-amyloid 1-42, the specific protein variant most strongly linked to Alzheimer's pathology. What makes this particularly concerning is the exposure level used - 3.1 millitesla is high but not unrealistic for certain occupational settings like electrical work or train operation. Put simply, this study shows a direct biological pathway by which the EMFs from our electrical infrastructure could potentially contribute to neurodegenerative disease. While this is laboratory research that needs replication in living systems, it adds important weight to the growing body of evidence suggesting we should take EMF exposure to the brain seriously.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 3.1 mG
- Source/Device
- 50 Hz
Exposure Context
This study used 3.1 mG for magnetic fields:
- 155Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 31Kx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 1 mG
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
We here tested the hypothesis that the exposure to LF-EMF may affect amyloidogenic processes.
We examined the effect of exposure to 3.1 mT 50 Hz LF-EMF on Abeta secretion in H4 neuroglioma cells...
We found that overnight exposure to LF-EMF induces a significant increase of amyloid-beta peptide (A...
These findings show for the first time that exposure to LF-EMF stimulates Abeta secretion in vitro, thus alluding to a potential link between LF-EMF exposure and APP processing in the brain.
Show BibTeX
@article{e_2007_fifty_hertz_electromagnetic_field_629,
author = {Del Giudice E and Facchinetti F and Nofrate V and Boccaccio P and Minelli T and Dam M and Leon A and Moschini G.},
title = {Fifty Hertz electromagnetic field exposure stimulates secretion of beta-amyloid peptide in cultured human neuroglioma.},
year = {2007},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17382472/},
}