Induction of micronuclei and superoxide production in neuroblastoma and glioma cell lines exposed to weak 50 Hz magnetic fields.
Kesari KK, Juutilainen J, Luukkonen J, Naarala J. · 2016
View Original AbstractBrain cells showed DNA damage and oxidative stress from magnetic fields as low as 10 microtesla, levels commonly found near household appliances.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed brain cells to extremely low frequency magnetic fields (the type from power lines) at levels as low as 10 microtesla for 24 hours. The study found significant DNA damage in human neuroblastoma cells and increased oxidative stress in rat brain cells. These effects occurred at magnetic field levels that are commonly encountered near electrical appliances and power infrastructure.
Why This Matters
This research adds crucial evidence to our understanding of how even weak magnetic fields can affect brain cells at the cellular level. The 10-30 microtesla exposure levels used in this study are particularly significant because they represent everyday exposures you encounter near household appliances, electrical wiring, and power lines. What makes this study especially noteworthy is that it demonstrates clear biological effects including DNA damage and oxidative stress at these relatively low exposure levels. The researchers found that the threshold for biological effects may be 10 microtesla or lower, which means many common exposures in your daily environment could potentially trigger these cellular responses. This adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting that current safety standards, which focus primarily on thermal effects, may not adequately protect against the biological effects occurring at much lower exposure levels.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.01 and 0.03 mG
- Source/Device
- 50 Hz
- Exposure Duration
- 24 hours
Exposure Context
This study used 0.01 and 0.03 mG for magnetic fields:
- 500x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 100x 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 effects of co-exposure of human neuroblastoma and rat glioma cells to a 50 Hz magnetic field and menadione on DNA damage and oxidative stress should be investigated.
Effects of 10 and 30 µT fields were studied in SH-SY5Y and C6 cells exposed to 50-Hz MFs for 24 h. B...
Responses to MF were observed in both cell lines, but the effects differed between the cell lines. M...
Show BibTeX
@article{kk_2016_induction_of_micronuclei_and_397,
author = {Kesari KK and Juutilainen J and Luukkonen J and Naarala J.},
title = {Induction of micronuclei and superoxide production in neuroblastoma and glioma cell lines exposed to weak 50 Hz magnetic fields.},
year = {2016},
doi = {10.1098/rsif.2015.0995},
url = {https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsif.2015.0995},
}