Fifty hertz extremely low-frequency magnetic field exposure elicits redox and trophic response in rat-cortical neurons.
Di Loreto S, Falone S, Caracciolo V, Sebastiani P, D'Alessandro A, Mirabilio A, Zimmitti V, Amicarelli F. · 2009
View Original AbstractThis study found that 50 Hz magnetic fields at very high intensities actually improved brain cell survival and triggered protective responses.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rat brain cells to 50 Hz magnetic fields and found the exposure improved cell survival and reduced cell death. The magnetic fields also triggered protective antioxidant responses and increased production of proteins that support brain health, suggesting potential protective effects.
Why This Matters
This study presents intriguing findings that challenge common assumptions about EMF effects on brain tissue. The research demonstrates that 50 Hz magnetic fields at 0.1 and 1 milliTesla intensities triggered protective cellular responses in rat neurons, including enhanced survival mechanisms and increased production of brain-protective proteins. To put this in perspective, 1 milliTesla is roughly 10,000 times stronger than typical household magnetic field exposures, which usually range from 0.01 to 0.2 microTesla. What makes this research particularly noteworthy is its focus on the cellular mechanisms underlying EMF exposure, specifically the role of glutathione in antioxidant defense and the upregulation of neurotrophic factors. While these results might seem reassuring, they underscore the complex and dose-dependent nature of EMF bioeffects. The reality is that we're still building our understanding of how different frequencies, intensities, and exposure durations affect biological systems, and protective effects at one exposure level don't necessarily translate to safety across all scenarios.
Exposure Details
- Magnetic Field
- 0.1 and 1 mG
- Source/Device
- 50 Hz
Exposure Context
This study used 0.1 and 1 mG for magnetic fields:
- 5Kx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.2 mG
- 1Kx above the BioInitiative Report recommendation of 1 mG
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 aim of the present work was to investigate the effects of exposures to two different 50 Hz sinusoidal ELF‐MFs intensities (0.1 and 1 mT) in maturing rat cortical neurons' major anti‐oxidative enzymatic and non‐enzymatic cellular protection systems, membrane peroxidative damage, as well as growth factor, and cytokine expression pattern.
Briefly, our results showed that ELF‐MFs affected positively the cell viability and concomitantly re...
Show BibTeX
@article{s_2009_fifty_hertz_extremely_lowfrequency_242,
author = {Di Loreto S and Falone S and Caracciolo V and Sebastiani P and D'Alessandro A and Mirabilio A and Zimmitti V and Amicarelli F.},
title = {Fifty hertz extremely low-frequency magnetic field exposure elicits redox and trophic response in rat-cortical neurons.},
year = {2009},
doi = {10.1002/jcp.21674},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jcp.21674},
}