Induction of adaptive response: pre-exposure of mice to 900 MHz radiofrequency fields reduces hematopoietic damage caused by subsequent exposure to ionising radiation.
Cao Y, Xu Q, Jin ZD, Zhou Z, Nie JH, Tong J. · 2011
View Original AbstractPre-exposure to cell phone radiation helped mice survive subsequent lethal radiation, suggesting RF fields can trigger protective cellular responses.
Plain English Summary
Chinese researchers found that mice exposed to cell phone radiation (900 MHz) for two weeks before receiving potentially lethal gamma radiation survived longer and showed less blood tissue damage. This suggests low-level radiofrequency exposure may activate protective cellular responses against subsequent radiation harm.
Why This Matters
This study reveals an intriguing biological phenomenon called adaptive response, where low-level RF exposure appears to prime cellular defense mechanisms. The power densities used (0.012 to 1.2 mW/cm²) span levels comparable to what you might encounter from a cell phone at varying distances. What makes this research particularly significant is that it challenges the simplistic view that all RF exposure is inherently harmful. The science demonstrates that biological systems can exhibit complex, dose-dependent responses to electromagnetic fields. However, this protective effect shouldn't be interpreted as evidence that RF exposure is beneficial. The reality is that we're still piecing together how these adaptive responses work and whether they occur consistently across different exposure scenarios and biological endpoints.
Exposure Details
- Power Density
- 0.012, 0.12, 1.2 µW/m²
- Source/Device
- 900 MHz
- Exposure Duration
- 1 h/day for 14 days
Exposure Context
This study used 0.012, 0.12, 1.2 µW/m² for radio frequency:
- 1.2Mx above the Building Biology guideline of 0.1 μW/m²
- 20Kx 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
To investigate whether an adaptive response can be induced in mice which were pre-exposed to 900 MHz radiofrequency fields.
Adult male Kunming mice were exposed to 900 MHz radiofrequency fields (RF) at power intensities of 1...
The results indicated a significant increase in survival time, reduction in the hematopoietic tissue...
Pre-exposure of mice to 900 MHz radiofrequency fields has resulted in a significant reduction in hematopoietic damage caused by subsequent exposure to ionising radiation. This phenomenon appears to be similar to that of the 'adaptive response' which is well documented in scientific literature.
Show BibTeX
@article{y_2011_induction_of_adaptive_response_895,
author = {Cao Y and Xu Q and Jin ZD and Zhou Z and Nie JH and Tong J.},
title = {Induction of adaptive response: pre-exposure of mice to 900 MHz radiofrequency fields reduces hematopoietic damage caused by subsequent exposure to ionising radiation.},
year = {2011},
url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21294690/},
}