Cellular ATP content was decreased by a homogeneous 8.5 T static magnetic field exposure: role of reactive oxygen species.
Zhao G, Chen S, Wang L, Zhao Y, Wang J, Wang X, Zhang W, Wu R, Wu L, Wu Y, Xu A · 2011
View Original AbstractExtremely strong magnetic fields (8.5 Tesla) significantly reduced cellular energy production and increased oxidative stress in human cells.
Plain English Summary
Scientists exposed human cells to extremely powerful magnetic fields (8.5 Tesla) and found cellular energy production dropped significantly while harmful molecules increased. The strongest magnetic fields disrupted the cells' ability to make energy, suggesting very intense magnetic exposure could interfere with basic cellular functions.
Why This Matters
This study provides important mechanistic insights into how extremely strong magnetic fields affect cellular function, particularly energy metabolism. The 8.5 Tesla exposure level is far beyond what you encounter in daily life - even MRI machines typically operate at 1.5 to 3 Tesla. What makes this research significant is that it identifies specific pathways through which magnetic fields can harm cells: disrupting ATP production and increasing oxidative stress. The fact that cells with pre-existing mitochondrial damage or DNA repair defects were more vulnerable suggests that people with certain health conditions might be at greater risk from magnetic field exposure. While these exposure levels are extreme, the study demonstrates clear biological mechanisms that warrant further investigation at more environmentally relevant field strengths.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 1000, 4000, 8500 mG
- Exposure Duration
- 3 or 5 h
Exposure Context
This study used 1000, 4000, 8500 mG for magnetic fields:
- 50Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 10Mx 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
The present study focused on the cellular effects of strong homogeneous SMF in human–hamster hybrid (AL) cells, mitochondria-deficient (ρ0 AL) cells, and double-strand break (DSB) repair-deficient (XRS-5) cells.
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) content was significantly decreased in AL cells exposed to 8.5 Tesla (T...
Our results indicated that the cellular ATP content was reduced by 8.5 T SMF for 3 h exposure, which was partially mediated by mitochondria and the DNA DSB repair process. Moreover, ROS were involved in the process of the cellular perturbations from the SMF.
Show BibTeX
@article{g_2011_cellular_atp_content_was_491,
author = {Zhao G and Chen S and Wang L and Zhao Y and Wang J and Wang X and Zhang W and Wu R and Wu L and Wu Y and Xu A},
title = {Cellular ATP content was decreased by a homogeneous 8.5 T static magnetic field exposure: role of reactive oxygen species.},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1002/bem.20617},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.20617},
}