Using model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae to evaluate the effects of ELF-MF and RF-EMF exposure on global gene expression.
Chen G, Lu D, Chiang H, Leszczynski D, Xu Z · 2012
View Original AbstractYeast cells showed virtually no gene changes from magnetic fields and minimal changes from radiofrequency radiation, suggesting limited cellular EMF effects.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed yeast cells to both 50 Hz magnetic fields and 1800 MHz radiofrequency radiation to see if electromagnetic fields could change gene activity. They found that magnetic fields caused no confirmed gene changes, while radiofrequency exposure affected only 2-5 genes out of thousands tested. This suggests that EMF effects on basic cellular processes may be more limited than some studies indicate.
Why This Matters
This study provides important context for understanding EMF bioeffects research. Using yeast as a model organism offers advantages because these cells share fundamental genetic machinery with human cells, yet are simpler to study systematically. The researchers found essentially no gene expression changes from 50 Hz magnetic field exposure at 0.4 mT (400 milliTesla) - a level roughly 1,000 times higher than typical household magnetic field exposures from appliances and wiring. The radiofrequency exposure at 4.7 W/kg produced minimal genetic changes, affecting fewer than 5 genes out of the thousands screened. What this means for you: while this single study cannot definitively rule out EMF bioeffects, it suggests that the cellular response to electromagnetic fields may be more limited than dramatic headlines often suggest. The science demonstrates that robust experimental design, including proper controls and confirmation testing, is essential for separating genuine bioeffects from experimental artifacts.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.4 mG
- Source/Device
- 50 Hz ELF-MF
- Exposure Duration
- 6h
Exposure Context
This study used 0.4 mG for magnetic fields:
- 20Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 4Kx 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 potential health hazard of exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) continues to cause public concern. However, the possibility of biological and health effects of exposure to EMF remains controversial and their biophysical mechanisms are unknown.
In the present study, we used Saccharomyces cerevisiae to identify genes responding to extremely low...
We were unable to confirm microarray-detected changes in three of the ELF-MF responsive candidate ge...
In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that the yeast cells did not alter gene expression in response to 50 Hz ELF-MF and that the response to RF-EMF is limited to only a very small number of genes. The possible biological consequences of the gene expression changes induced by RF-EMF await further investigation.
Show BibTeX
@article{g_2012_using_model_organism_saccharomyces_2,
author = {Chen G and Lu D and Chiang H and Leszczynski D and Xu Z},
title = {Using model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae to evaluate the effects of ELF-MF and RF-EMF exposure on global gene expression.},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.1002/bem.21724},
url = {http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/bem.21724/full},
}