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The effect of Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves in unimodal and multimodal object recognition tasks in male rats

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Hassanshahi A, Shafeie SA, Fatemi I, Hassanshahi E, Allahtavakoli M, Shabani M, Roohbakhsh A, Shamsizadeh A · 2017

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Chronic exposure to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi radiation impaired rats' ability to discriminate novel objects in multiple recognition tests and increased M1 receptor expression.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed 80 male Wistar rats to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi radiation for 30 days at 12 hours per day. Exposed rats could not discriminate between novel and familiar objects in standard, tactile, visual, and cross-modal object recognition tests. M1 receptor expression increased after Wi-Fi exposure. The researchers concluded that chronic Wi-Fi exposure might impair both unimodal and cross-modal information encoding.

Why This Matters

The study was motivated by recent reports of hazardous effects of Wi-Fi signals on the nervous system. Cross-modal object recognition was tested using four variations of the spontaneous object recognition test. A discrimination ratio measured the animals' preference for the novel object. Hippocampal M1 and GAT1 mRNA levels were measured using quantitative real-time RT-PCR.

Exposure Information

A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 2.40 GHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 2.40 GHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study. The study examined exposure from: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi Duration: 12 hr/day. 30 days

Study Details

Considering the recent reports about some hazardous effects of Wi-Fi signals on the nervous system, this study aimed to investigate the effect of 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi radiation on multisensory integration in rats.

This experimental study was done on 80 male Wistar rats that were allocated into exposure and sham g...

Results demonstrated that rats in Wi-Fi exposure groups could not discriminate significantly between...

In conclusion, results of this study showed that chronic exposure to Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves might impair both unimodal and cross-modal encoding of information.

Cite This Study
Hassanshahi A, Shafeie SA, Fatemi I, Hassanshahi E, Allahtavakoli M, Shabani M, Roohbakhsh A, Shamsizadeh A (2017). The effect of Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves in unimodal and multimodal object recognition tasks in male rats Neurol Sci. 2017 Mar 22. doi: 10.1007/s10072-017-2920-y.
Show BibTeX
@article{a_2017_the_effect_of_wifi_1496,
  author = {Hassanshahi A and Shafeie SA and Fatemi I and Hassanshahi E and Allahtavakoli M and Shabani M and Roohbakhsh A and Shamsizadeh A},
  title = {The effect of Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves in unimodal and multimodal object recognition tasks in male rats},
  year = {2017},
  doi = {10.1007/s10072-017-2920-y},
  url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10072-017-2920-y},
}
DOI: 10.1007/s10072-017-2920-y

Cited By (31 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

Rats were exposed to 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi microwaves at 23.6 dBm with a 3% duty cycle for 30 days, 12 hours per day.
The study used standard spontaneous object recognition, tactile spontaneous object recognition, visual spontaneous object recognition, and cross-modal visual-tactile object recognition tests.
Rats exposed to Wi-Fi could not significantly discriminate between novel and familiar objects in any of the standard SOR, tactile SOR, visual SOR, and CMOR tests.
The expression of M1 receptors increased following Wi-Fi exposure.
The researchers concluded that chronic exposure to Wi-Fi electromagnetic waves might impair both unimodal and cross-modal encoding of information.