Maternal exposure to a continuous 900-MHz electromagnetic field provokes neuronal loss and pathological changes in cerebellum of 32-day-old female rat offspring.
Odacı E, Hancı H, İkinci A, Sönmez OF, Aslan A, Şahin A, Kaya H, Çolakoğlu S, Baş O · 2016
View Original AbstractPrenatal exposure to cell phone-frequency EMF caused lasting brain cell loss and damage in developing offspring.
Plain English Summary
Pregnant rats exposed to cell phone-frequency radiation (900-MHz) for one hour daily produced offspring with significantly fewer brain cells in the cerebellum, the region controlling movement and coordination. The brain damage persisted into young adulthood, suggesting prenatal EMF exposure may harm developing brains.
Why This Matters
This study adds to mounting evidence that EMF exposure during critical developmental windows can cause lasting neurological harm. The 900-MHz frequency tested here is identical to what many cell phones and wireless devices emit, making these findings directly relevant to pregnant women's daily exposure. What makes this research particularly concerning is that the brain damage persisted well beyond the exposure period - the offspring showed reduced brain cells and cellular damage at 32 days old, equivalent to childhood in humans. The cerebellum plays crucial roles in motor control, balance, and cognitive function, so damage to this region could have lifelong consequences. While this study used laboratory animals, the biological mechanisms of brain development are remarkably similar between rats and humans, especially during prenatal periods when the brain is most vulnerable to environmental toxins.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study. The study examined exposure from: 900-MHz Duration: 1 h
Study Details
This study was planned to investigate the 32-day-old female rat pup cerebellum following exposure to 900 MHz EMF during the prenatal period using stereological and histopathological evaluation methods.
Pregnant rats were divided into control, sham and EMF groups. Pregnant EMF group (PEMFG) rats were e...
Total Purkinje cell numbers calculated using stereological analysis were significantly lower in EMFG...
In conclusion, our study results show that prenatal exposure to EMF affects the development of Purkinje cells in the female rat cerebellum and that the consequences of this pathological effect persist after the postnatal period
Show BibTeX
@article{e_2016_maternal_exposure_to_a_1520,
author = {Odacı E and Hancı H and İkinci A and Sönmez OF and Aslan A and Şahin A and Kaya H and Çolakoğlu S and Baş O},
title = {Maternal exposure to a continuous 900-MHz electromagnetic field provokes neuronal loss and pathological changes in cerebellum of 32-day-old female rat offspring.},
year = {2016},
url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0891061815000708},
}