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Extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields enhance chemically induced formation of apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP)sites in A172 cells.

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Koyama S, Sakurai T, Nakahara T, Miyakoshi J · 2008

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ELF magnetic fields alone did not increase AP sites in human glioma cells, but combined with chemical agents, they enhanced AP-site formation.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers measured apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) sites in human glioma A172 cells after exposure to extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields, genotoxic chemicals, or both. ELF magnetic fields alone produced no difference in AP sites compared with sham controls. The results suggest that the number of AP sites induced by MMS or H2O2 is enhanced by exposure to ELF magnetic fields at 5 millitesla (mT).

Why This Matters

When cells were treated with MMS or H2O2 alone, the number of AP sites increased with longer treatment times. Adding ELF magnetic field exposure on top of those chemicals raised AP-site levels further compared with the chemicals alone. The researchers suggested this may occur because ELF magnetic field exposure can enhance the activity or lengthen the lifetime of radical pairs.

Exposure Details

Magnetic Field
5 mT
Source/Device
60 Hz
Exposure Duration
2, 4, 8, 16 or 24 h

Exposure Context

This study used 5 mT for magnetic fields:

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 Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 5 mTExtreme Concern - 5 mGFCC Limit - 2,000 mGEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)This level is 25 times the FCC limit
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 60 Hz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 60 HzCell phones~1 GHzWiFi2.4 GHz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

To detect the effects of extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields, the number of apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) sites in human glioma A172 cells was measured following exposure to ELF magnetic fields.

The cells were exposed to an ELF magnetic field alone, to genotoxic agents (methyl methane sulfonate...

There was no difference in the number of AP sites between cells exposed to an ELF magnetic field and...

Our results suggest that the number of AP sites induced by MMS or H2O2 is enhanced by exposure to ELF magnetic fields at 5 millitesla (mT). This may occur because such exposure can enhance the activity or lengthen the lifetime of radical pairs.

Cite This Study
Koyama S, Sakurai T, Nakahara T, Miyakoshi J (2008). Extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields enhance chemically induced formation of apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP)sites in A172 cells. Int J Radiat Biol. 84(1):53-59, 2008.
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2008_extremely_low_frequency_elf_401,
  author = {Koyama S and Sakurai T and Nakahara T and Miyakoshi J},
  title = {Extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields enhance chemically induced formation of apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP)sites in A172 cells.},
  year = {2008},
  doi = {10.1080/09553000701616064},
  url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09553000701616064},
}
DOI: 10.1080/09553000701616064

Cited By (25 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

The study used human glioma A172 cells, and the number of AP sites in those cells was measured following exposure to ELF magnetic fields.
ELF magnetic fields alone produced no difference in AP sites compared with sham controls.
Exposure to an ELF magnetic field combined with the genotoxic agents increased AP-site levels compared with the genotoxic agents alone.
The study used ELF magnetic fields at 5 millitesla (mT).
The researchers suggested the effect may occur because ELF magnetic field exposure can enhance the activity or lengthen the lifetime of radical pairs.