Therapeutic approaches of melatonin in microwave radiations-induced oxidative stress-mediated toxicity on male fertility pattern of Wistar rats
Meena R, Kumari K, Kumar J, Rajamani P, Verma HN, Kesari KK · 2014
View Original AbstractWiFi-level microwave radiation damaged sperm production and DNA in rat testicles, but melatonin supplementation prevented most harm.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed male rats to WiFi-frequency radiation (2.45 GHz) for 2 hours daily over 45 days, finding significant damage to sperm production and testosterone levels. Melatonin supplements prevented most reproductive harm, suggesting microwave radiation threatens male fertility but antioxidants may offer protection.
Why This Matters
This study adds to mounting evidence that radiofrequency radiation affects male reproductive health through oxidative stress mechanisms. The 2.45 GHz frequency and power density (0.21 mW/cm²) used here are directly relevant to everyday WiFi exposure, making these findings particularly concerning for men of reproductive age. What's especially notable is that melatonin supplementation largely prevented the observed damage, demonstrating that the effects aren't inevitable but result from biological processes we can potentially address. The research shows measurable impacts on multiple fertility markers including sperm count, testosterone levels, and DNA integrity in testicular cells. While this is animal research, it aligns with human studies showing decreased sperm quality in men with higher cell phone and WiFi exposure, strengthening the case for taking precautionary steps to reduce EMF exposure, especially for men planning to start families.
Exposure Details
- SAR
- 0.14 W/kg
- Power Density
- 0.21 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- 2.45 GHz
- Exposure Duration
- 2 h a day for 45 days
Exposure Context
This study used 0.21 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 21Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 350Kx 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
Present study aimed to investigate the protective effects of melatonin (is well known antioxidant that protects DNA, lipids and proteins from free radical damage) against oxidative stress-mediated testicular impairment due to long-term exposure of MWs.
For this, 70-day-old male Wistar rats were divided into four groups (n = 6/group): Sham exposed, Mel...
Result shows that melatonin prevent oxidative damage biochemically by significant increase (p < 0.0...
These results concluded that the melatonin has strong antioxidative potential against MW induced oxidative stress mediated DNA damage in testicular cells.
Show BibTeX
@article{r_2014_therapeutic_approaches_of_melatonin_1197,
author = {Meena R and Kumari K and Kumar J and Rajamani P and Verma HN and Kesari KK},
title = {Therapeutic approaches of melatonin in microwave radiations-induced oxidative stress-mediated toxicity on male fertility pattern of Wistar rats},
year = {2014},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23676079/},
}