Note: This study found no significant biological effects under its experimental conditions. We include all studies for scientific completeness.
Effects of different mobile phone UMTS signals on DNA, apoptosis and oxidative stress in human lymphocytes
Gulati, S, Kosik, P, Durdik, M, Skorvaga, M., Jakl, L., Markova, E., Belyaev, I. · 2020
The study found a small but statistically significant increase in DNA damage in human lymphocytes exposed to UMTS signals, with the strongest effect at 1977.0 MHz.
Plain English Summary
Researchers compared genotoxic effects of three UMTS frequency channels used by 3G phones (1923, 1947.47, and 1977 MHz) in human lymphocytes. Human lymphocytes were exposed for 1 hour and 3 hours and tested for ROS, DNA damage, TP53 mutations, preleukemic fusion genes, and apoptosis. No effects were seen on ROS, apoptosis, preleukemic fusion genes, or TP53 mutations at any frequency, though bulk RNA expression was inhibited. A small but statistically significant increase in DNA damage occurred depending on the UMTS frequency channel, with the maximum effect at 1977.0 MHz.
Why This Matters
Previous studies on radiofrequency radiation and DNA damage or reactive oxygen species have reported conflicting results. The authors note that earlier studies are not directly comparable because they used different exposure parameters, especially carrier frequency. The researchers conclude that each specific mobile communication signal should be tested in dedicated experiments to assess potential genotoxic effects from prolonged exposure.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Show BibTeX
@article{effects_of_different_mobile_phone_umts_signals_on_dna_apoptosis_and_oxidative_stress_in_human_lymphocytes_ce2390,
author = {Gulati and S and Kosik and P and Durdik and M and Skorvaga and M. and Jakl and L. and Markova and E. and Belyaev and I.},
title = {Effects of different mobile phone UMTS signals on DNA, apoptosis and oxidative stress in human lymphocytes},
year = {2020},
doi = {10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115632},
}