Naltrexone blocks RFR-induced DNA double strand breaks in rat brain cells.
Lai, H, Carino, MA, Singh, NP, · 1997
View Original AbstractWiFi-frequency radiation caused DNA breaks in rat brain cells through the body's opioid system, suggesting biological harm below current safety limits.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rats to 2.45 GHz microwave radiation (the same frequency used in WiFi and microwave ovens) for 2 hours and found it caused DNA double strand breaks in brain cells. When they gave the rats naltrexone, a drug that blocks the body's natural opioids, it partially prevented this DNA damage. This suggests the body's own opioid system plays a role in how microwave radiation damages DNA in brain cells.
Why This Matters
This study reveals a concerning mechanism by which radiofrequency radiation damages DNA in brain tissue. The researchers used 2.45 GHz radiation at 1.2 W/kg SAR, which is below current safety limits but still within the range of everyday exposures from WiFi routers, smartphones, and microwave ovens. What makes this research particularly significant is that it identifies the body's endogenous opioid system as a pathway through which RF radiation causes genetic damage. The fact that naltrexone could partially block the DNA damage suggests this isn't just random cellular destruction, but follows specific biological pathways that we're only beginning to understand. This adds to a growing body of evidence showing that current safety standards, which only consider heating effects, may be inadequate to protect against the biological mechanisms actually causing harm at lower exposure levels.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 1.2 W/kg
- Power Density
- 2 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- 2450 MHz
- Exposure Duration
- 2 hours
Exposure Context
This study used 2 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 200Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 3.3Mx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 0.0006 μW/cm²
This study used 1.2 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):
- 3x above the Building Biology guideline of 0.4 W/kg
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 experiment was carried out to investigate whether endogenous opioids are also involved in RFR‐induced DNA strand breaks.
Rats were treated with the opioid antagonist naltrexone (1 mg/kg, IP) immediately before and after e...
Results showed that the RFR exposure significantly increased DNA double strand breaks in brain cells...
Thus, these data indicate that endogenous opioids play a mediating role in RFR‐induced DNA strand breaks in brain cells of the rat.
Show BibTeX
@article{lai_1997_naltrexone_blocks_rfrinduced_dna_762,
author = {Lai and H and Carino and MA and Singh and NP and},
title = {Naltrexone blocks RFR-induced DNA double strand breaks in rat brain cells.},
year = {1997},
doi = {10.1023/A:1019154611749},
url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1019154611749},
}