Activation of VEGF/Flk-1-ERK Pathway Induced Blood-Brain Barrier Injury After Microwave Exposure

Bioeffects Seen

Wang LF, Li X, Gao YB, Wang SM, Zhao L, Dong J, Yao BW, Xu XP, Chang GM, Zhou HM, Hu XJ, Peng RY. · 2015

Microwave radiation may induce blood-brain barrier damage by activating the VEGF/Flk-1-ERK pathway and altering occludin expression.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers used an in vitro blood-brain barrier model exposed to microwave radiation at 50 mW/cm2 for 5 minutes to study how the VEGF/Flk-1-ERK pathway relates to barrier injury. Microwave radiation caused tight junctions to broaden and fracture, with decreased TEER values and increased HRP permeability. When Flk-1 and MEK1/2 inhibitors were applied, the structure and function of the blood-brain barrier were recovered.

Why This Matters

The model used to study the barrier was made up of the ECV304 cell line and primary rat cerebral astrocytes. Barrier structure was observed by scanning electron microscopy, and permeability was assessed by measuring transendothelial electrical resistance and horseradish peroxidase transmission. Following inhibitor use, the increase in ERK signal transduction molecules was muted, while occludin expression and activity were accelerated.

Exposure Details

Power Density: 50 mW/cm²
Exposure Duration: 5 min

Exposure Context

This study used 50 mW/cm² for radio frequency:

5,000Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
83.3Mx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 0.0006 μW/cm²

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 role of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)/Flk-1-Raf/MAPK kinase (MEK)/extracellular-regulated protein kinase (ERK) pathway in structural and functional injury of the blood–brain barrier (BBB) following microwave exposure was examined.

An in vitro BBB model composed of the ECV304 cell line and primary rat cerebral astrocytes was expos...

Our results showed that microwave radiation caused intercellular tight junctions to broaden and fra...

Cite This Study

Wang LF, Li X, Gao YB, Wang SM, Zhao L, Dong J, Yao BW, Xu XP, Chang GM, Zhou HM, Hu XJ, Peng RY. (2015). Activation of VEGF/Flk-1-ERK Pathway Induced Blood-Brain Barrier Injury After Microwave Exposure Mol Neurobiol.52, pages478–491(2015).

Show BibTeX

@article{lf_2015_activation_of_vegfflk1erk_pathway_201,
  author = {Wang LF and Li X and Gao YB and Wang SM and Zhao L and Dong J and Yao BW and Xu XP and Chang GM and Zhou HM and Hu XJ and Peng RY.},
  title = {Activation of VEGF/Flk-1-ERK Pathway Induced Blood-Brain Barrier Injury After Microwave Exposure},
  year = {2015},
  doi = {10.1007/s12035-014-8848-9},
  url = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12035-014-8848-9},
}

DOI: 10.1007/s12035-014-8848-9

Cited By (2 papers)

The non-thermal biological effects and mechanisms of microwave exposure
X. Zhao et al. (2021) - 23 citations
Occludin: a gatekeeper of brain Infection by HIV-1
S. Torices et al. (2023) - 8 citations

Quick Questions About This Study

An in vitro blood-brain barrier model composed of the ECV304 cell line and primary rat cerebral astrocytes was used.

The model was exposed to microwave radiation at 50 mW/cm2 for 5 minutes.

Microwave radiation caused intercellular tight junctions to broaden and fracture, with decreased TEER values and increased HRP permeability.

After Flk-1 and MEK1/2 inhibitors were used, the structure and function of the blood-brain barrier were recovered.

Researchers concluded that microwave radiation may induce blood-brain barrier damage by activating the VEGF/Flk-1-ERK pathway, enhancing Tyr phosphorylation of occludin, while partially inhibiting expression and interaction of occludin with ZO-1.