Effect of radio-frequency electromagnetic radiations (RF-EMR) on passive avoidance behaviour and hippocampal morphology in Wistar rats.
Narayanan SN, Kumar RS, Potu BK, Nayak S, Bhat PG, Mailankot M · 2010
View Original AbstractCell phone radiation impaired memory and damaged brain tissue in rats after just four weeks of typical daily exposure.
Plain English Summary
Researchers exposed rats to cell phone radiation by placing an active phone in their cages and making 50 missed calls daily for four weeks. The exposed rats showed impaired learning and memory behavior, taking less time to enter dangerous areas they had previously learned to avoid. Brain tissue examination revealed structural damage in the hippocampus, the brain region crucial for memory formation.
Why This Matters
This study demonstrates that cell phone radiation can impair learning and memory while causing physical damage to brain tissue. The exposure method - 50 missed calls per day - represents a realistic scenario many people experience, yet it produced measurable cognitive deficits and structural brain changes in just four weeks. What makes this research particularly significant is that it shows both functional impairment (reduced learning ability) and anatomical damage occurring together, suggesting the behavioral changes have a biological basis. The hippocampus damage observed here is especially concerning because this brain region is essential for forming new memories and spatial navigation. While we can't directly extrapolate animal studies to humans, this research adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that routine cell phone use may affect brain function and structure.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study. The study examined exposure from: GSM (0.9 GHz/1.8 GHz) mobile phone Duration: 50 missed call/day, 4 wk
Study Details
We evaluated the effect of RF-EMR from mobile phones on passive avoidance behaviour and hippocampal morphology in rats.
Healthy male albino Wistar rats were exposed to RF-EMR by giving 50 missed calls (within 1 hour) per...
Passive avoidance behaviour was significantly affected in mobile phone RF-EMR-exposed rats demonstra...
Mobile phone RF-EMR exposure significantly altered the passive avoidance behaviour and hippocampal morphology in rats.
Show BibTeX
@article{sn_2010_effect_of_radiofrequency_electromagnetic_1519,
author = {Narayanan SN and Kumar RS and Potu BK and Nayak S and Bhat PG and Mailankot M},
title = {Effect of radio-frequency electromagnetic radiations (RF-EMR) on passive avoidance behaviour and hippocampal morphology in Wistar rats.},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.3109/03009730903552661},
url = {https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/03009730903552661},
}