Autophagy is modulated in human neuroblastoma cells through direct exposition to low frequency electromagnetic fields.
Marchesi N, Osera C, Fassina L, Amadio M, Angeletti F, Morini M, Magenes G, Venturini L, Biggiogera M, Ricevuti G, Govoni S, Caorsi S, Pascale A, Comincini S. · 2014
View Original AbstractLow-frequency EMF exposure enhanced brain cells' natural cleanup systems, potentially offering protection against protein buildup in neurodegenerative diseases.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed human brain cells to low-frequency electromagnetic fields and found the EMF activated autophagy, the cell's natural cleanup system that removes damaged proteins. This enhanced cellular cleaning could potentially help protect against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's by clearing harmful protein buildup.
Why This Matters
This research presents a fascinating counterpoint to concerns about EMF health effects, demonstrating that low-frequency electromagnetic fields can actually enhance cellular repair mechanisms in brain cells. The study shows EMF exposure triggered autophagy - essentially the cell's garbage disposal system - which could help clear the protein aggregates that characterize Alzheimer's disease. What makes this particularly significant is the specificity of the biological pathway identified: EMF reduced microRNA 30a, which normally acts as a brake on autophagy, thereby allowing enhanced cellular cleanup.
While this laboratory study used neuroblastoma cells rather than healthy brain tissue, it adds to a growing body of research suggesting that EMF bioeffects are far more nuanced than simple 'harmful' or 'harmless' categories. The reality is that electromagnetic fields interact with biological systems in complex ways that can vary dramatically based on frequency, intensity, and duration. What this means for you is that the EMF health debate cannot be reduced to blanket statements - the science demonstrates that specific EMF parameters may have therapeutic potential even as others may pose risks.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Study Details
Epidemiological investigations on the possible causes undergoing these diseases have suggested that electromagnetic fields (EMF) exposition can contribute to their etiology. On the other hand, EMF have therapeutic implications in reactivating neuronal functionality. To partly clarify this dualism, the effect of low‐frequency EMF (LF‐EMF) on the modulation of autophagy was investigated in human neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cells, which were also subsequently exposed to Aβ peptides, key players in AD.
The results primarily point that LF‐EMF induce a significant reduction of microRNA 30a (miR‐30a) exp...
Overall, this research demonstrates, for the first time, that specific LF‐EMF treatments can modulate in vitro the expression of a microRNA sequence, which in turn affects autophagy via Beclin1 expression. Taking into account the pivotal role of autophagy in the clearance of protein aggregates within the cells, our results indicate a potential cytoprotective effect exerted by LF‐EMF in neurodegenerative diseases such as AD
Show BibTeX
@article{n_2014_autophagy_is_modulated_in_1565,
author = {Marchesi N and Osera C and Fassina L and Amadio M and Angeletti F and Morini M and Magenes G and Venturini L and Biggiogera M and Ricevuti G and Govoni S and Caorsi S and Pascale A and Comincini S. },
title = {Autophagy is modulated in human neuroblastoma cells through direct exposition to low frequency electromagnetic fields.},
year = {2014},
doi = {10.1002/jcp.24631},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jcp.24631},
}