8,700 Studies Reviewed. 87.0% Found Biological Effects. The Evidence is Clear.
Shield Your Body
Brain & Nervous System

Effect of extremely low frequency electromagnetic field on brain histopathology of Caspian Sea Cyprinus carpio.

Bioeffects Seen

Samiee F, Samiee K. · 2017

View Original Abstract
Share:

ELF electromagnetic fields caused severe brain damage in fish at 3+ milliTesla, showing clear dose-response effects.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed Caspian Sea carp to extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (the same 50 Hz frequency used in power lines and household electricity) for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Fish exposed to magnetic field strengths of 3 milliTesla or higher showed severe brain damage, including tissue death. The damage worsened with both stronger fields and longer exposure times.

Why This Matters

This study demonstrates that ELF-EMF exposure can cause measurable brain damage in living organisms, adding to the growing body of evidence that these fields have biological effects. While the magnetic field strengths used (3-7 milliTesla) are higher than typical household exposures, they're within range of what you might encounter very close to high-power electrical equipment or certain occupational settings. The fact that brain tissue death occurred with relatively short exposures is particularly concerning. What makes this research valuable is its clear dose-response relationship - stronger fields and longer exposures caused more severe damage, which is exactly what you'd expect if EMF is truly causing the observed effects rather than random variation.

Exposure Details

Magnetic Field
0.1, 1, 3, 5, and 7 mG
Source/Device
50 Hz
Exposure Duration
0.5 and 1 h

Exposure Context

This study used 0.1, 1, 3, 5, and 7 mG for magnetic fields:

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 Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 0.1, 1, 3, 5, and 7 mGExtreme Concern - 5 mGFCC Limit - 2,000 mGEffects observed in the No Concern rangeFCC limit is 20,000x higher than this level
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 50 Hz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 50 HzCell phones~1 GHzWiFi2.4 GHz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of extremely low frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) (50 Hz) exposure on brain histopathology of Cyprinus carpio, one of the important species of Caspian Sea with significant economic value.

A total of 200 healthy fish were used in this study. They were classified randomly in two groups: sh...

Histologic results indicate that exposure of C. carpio to artificial ELF-EMF caused severe histopath...

Further studies are needed to elucidate exact mechanism of EMF exposure on the brain.

Cite This Study
Samiee F, Samiee K. (2017). Effect of extremely low frequency electromagnetic field on brain histopathology of Caspian Sea Cyprinus carpio. Electromagn Biol Med. 36(1):31-38, 2017.
Show BibTeX
@article{f_2017_effect_of_extremely_low_705,
  author = {Samiee F and Samiee K.},
  title = {Effect of extremely low frequency electromagnetic field on brain histopathology of Caspian Sea Cyprinus carpio.},
  year = {2017},
  doi = {10.3109/15368378.2016.1144064},
  url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/15368378.2016.1144064},
}
DOI: 10.3109/15368378.2016.1144064

Cited By (6 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

Yes, research on Caspian Sea carp found that 50 Hz electromagnetic fields (the same frequency as power lines) caused severe brain damage at magnetic field strengths of 3 milliTesla or higher. The damage included tissue death and worsened with stronger fields and longer exposure times.
A 2017 study found that magnetic field strengths of 3 milliTesla or higher caused brain tissue death (necrosis) in Caspian Sea carp exposed to 50 Hz electromagnetic fields. Lower field strengths did not produce the same severe histopathological changes in brain tissue.
Brain damage from 50 Hz electromagnetic fields occurred within 30 minutes to 1 hour of exposure in Caspian Sea carp. Researchers found that both field intensity and duration of exposure were key parameters in causing brain lesions and tissue death.
Yes, exposure to 50 Hz electromagnetic fields (power line frequency) caused severe histopathological changes in fish brains, including tissue necrosis. The study on Caspian Sea carp showed that artificial ELF-EMF exposure at field intensities of 3 milliTesla or higher produced significant brain damage.
Yes, Caspian Sea carp showed high sensitivity to extremely low frequency magnetic fields at 50 Hz. Exposure to field strengths of 3 milliTesla or higher for just 30 minutes to 1 hour caused severe brain histopathological changes and tissue death in these fish.