6,486 Studies Reviewed. 85.2% of Original Studies Found Biological Effects. The Evidence is Clear.
Shield Your Body

Note: This study found no significant biological effects under its experimental conditions. We include all studies for scientific completeness.

Cellular Effects

Evaluating the biological effects of intermittent 1.9 GHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency fields in a series of human-derived cell lines.

No Effects Found

Chauhan V, Mariampillai A, Kutzner BC, Wilkins RC, Ferrarotto C, Bellier PV, Marro L, Gajda GB, Lemay E, Thansandote A, McNamee JP. · 2007

View Original Abstract
Share:

The study found no evidence that non-thermal RF-field exposure caused detectable biological effects in three human-derived cell lines.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed human-derived cell lines TK6, HL60, and Mono-Mac-6 to intermittent 1.9 GHz pulse-modulated RF fields for 6 hours at SARs of 0, 1, and 10 W/kg. Cell viability, apoptosis, and cell cycle kinetics were measured immediately after exposure and 18 hours later. Cytokine expression (TNFA, IL1B, IL6, IL8, IL10, IL12) was also assessed. No detectable changes in cell viability, cell cycle kinetics, apoptosis, or cytokine expression were observed in any exposed group compared to sham controls. The positive heat-shock control showed decreased viability, increased apoptosis, and a G(2)/M cell cycle block.

Why This Matters

The study included concurrent negative incubator controls and positive heat-shock controls at 43°C for 1 hour. The authors concluded that non-thermal RF-field exposure did not elicit any detectable biological effect in the three cell lines.

Exposure Details

SAR
0, 1 and 10 W/kg
Source/Device
1.9 GHz
Exposure Duration
5 min ON, 10 min OFF for 6 h

Where This Falls on the Concern Scale

Study Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextExtreme Concern - 0.1 W/kgFCC Limit - 1.6 W/kg
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 1.90 GHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 1.90 GHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

In the present study, we have assessed the ability of non-thermal RF-field exposure to affect a variety of biological processes (including apoptosis, cell cycle progression, viability and cytokine production) in a series of human-derived cell lines (TK6, HL60 and Mono-Mac-6).

Exponentially growing cells were exposed to intermittent (5 min on, 10 min off) 1.9 GHz pulse-modula...

No detectable changes in cell viability, cell cycle kinetics, incidence of apoptosis, or cytokine ex...

Overall, we found no evidence that non-thermal RF-field exposure could elicit any detectable biological effect in three human-derived cell lines.

Cite This Study
Chauhan V, Mariampillai A, Kutzner BC, Wilkins RC, Ferrarotto C, Bellier PV, Marro L, Gajda GB, Lemay E, Thansandote A, McNamee JP. (2007). Evaluating the biological effects of intermittent 1.9 GHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency fields in a series of human-derived cell lines. Radiat Res. 167(1):87-93, 2007.
Show BibTeX
@article{v_2007_evaluating_the_biological_effects_2972,
  author = {Chauhan V and Mariampillai A and Kutzner BC and Wilkins RC and Ferrarotto C and Bellier PV and Marro L and Gajda GB and Lemay E and Thansandote A and McNamee JP.},
  title = {Evaluating the biological effects of intermittent 1.9 GHz pulse-modulated radiofrequency fields in a series of human-derived cell lines.},
  year = {2007},
  
  url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17214515/},
}
PubMed: 17214515

Cited By (34 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

The study used human-derived cell lines TK6, HL60, and Mono-Mac-6.
Cells were exposed to intermittent 1.9 GHz pulse-modulated RF fields (5 minutes on, 10 minutes off) for 6 hours at SARs of 0, 1, and 10 W/kg.
Cell viability, apoptosis, and cell cycle kinetics were measured immediately after exposure and 18 hours later. Cytokine expression (TNFA, IL1B, IL6, IL8, IL10, IL12) was also assessed.
No detectable changes in cell viability, cell cycle kinetics, apoptosis, or cytokine expression were observed in any exposed group compared to sham controls.
The positive heat-shock control showed decreased cell viability, increased apoptosis, and a G(2)/M cell cycle block.