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Confirmation studies of Soviet research on immunological effects of microwaves: Russian immunology results.

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Grigoriev YG, Grigoriev OA, Ivanov AA, Lyaginskaya AM, Merkulov AV, Shagina NB, Maltsev VN, Lévêque P, Ulanova AM, Osipov VA, Shafirkin AV. · 2010

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A replication study of Soviet research found minor increases in antibody formation in brain tissue of rats exposed to radiofrequency fields, but the exposure did not appear to be pathological.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers replicated earlier Soviet studies from 1974 to 1991 that had examined immunological and reproductive effects of long-term low-level radiofrequency exposure in rats. Wistar rats were exposed in the far field to 2450 MHz continuous wave RF fields at an incident power density of 5 W/m² for 7 hours per day, 5 days per week, for a total of 30 days, resulting in a whole-body SAR of 0.16 W/kg. The results partly confirmed the earlier findings and indicated possible effects from non-thermal RF exposure on autoimmune processes. A separate part of the study suggested possible adverse effects of blood serum from exposed rats on pregnancy and foetal development of intact rats, though the researchers noted that applying these results to exposure standards is limited.

Why This Matters

The original Soviet studies had been used in part to develop exposure standards for the USSR population, which made confirming their findings a priority. To keep conditions comparable, the researchers made the RF exposure as similar as possible to those in the earlier experiments. Immunological effects in the brain and liver were evaluated using the complement fixation test, as in the original studies, as well as the more modern ELISA test. The antibody increases observed in brain tissue were described as minor, and the exposure did not appear to be pathological.

Exposure Details

SAR
0.16 W/kg
Power Density
0.5 mW/cm²
Source/Device
2450 MHz
Exposure Duration
7 h/day, 5 days/week for a total of 30 days

Exposure Context

This study used 0.5 mW/cm² for radio frequency:

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: 0.5 mW/cm²Extreme Concern - 1,000 µW/m²FCC Limit - 10M µW/m²Effects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)FCC limit is 2 times higher than this level
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 2.45 GHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 2.45 GHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

This paper presents the results of a replication study performed to investigate earlier Soviet studies conducted between 1974 and 1991 that showed immunological and reproductive effects of long-term low-level exposure of rats to radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields.

The early studies were used, in part, for developing exposure standards for the USSR population and ...

Our results, using CFT and ELISA, partly confirmed the findings of the early studies and indicated p...

Cite This Study
Grigoriev YG, Grigoriev OA, Ivanov AA, Lyaginskaya AM, Merkulov AV, Shagina NB, Maltsev VN, Lévêque P, Ulanova AM, Osipov VA, Shafirkin AV. (2010). Confirmation studies of Soviet research on immunological effects of microwaves: Russian immunology results. Bioelectromagnetics. 31(8):589-602, 2010.
Show BibTeX
@article{yg_2010_confirmation_studies_of_soviet_1006,
  author = {Grigoriev YG and Grigoriev OA and Ivanov AA and Lyaginskaya AM and Merkulov AV and Shagina NB and Maltsev VN and Lévêque P and Ulanova AM and Osipov VA and Shafirkin AV.},
  title = {Confirmation studies of Soviet research on immunological effects of microwaves: Russian immunology results.},
  year = {2010},
  
  url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20857454/},
}
PubMed: 20857454

Cited By (42 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

Rats were exposed to 2450 MHz continuous wave RF fields at an incident power density of 5 W/m², resulting in a whole-body SAR of 0.16 W/kg.
The RF exposure resulted in minor increases in formation of antibodies in brain tissue extract, and the exposure did not appear to be pathological.
Results showed possible adverse effects of blood serum from exposed rats on pregnancy and foetal development of intact rats, though the researchers noted that applying these results to developing exposure standards is limited.
The results only partly confirmed the findings of the early studies.
The early studies had been used in part for developing exposure standards for the USSR population, making it necessary to confirm the Russian findings.