Diamagnetic levitation promotes osteoclast differentiation from RAW264.7 cells
Sun YL, Chen ZH, Chen XH, Yin C, Li DJ, Ma XL, Zhao F, Zhang G, Shang P, Qian AR · 2015
View Original AbstractPowerful magnetic fields showed complex effects on bone cells, with simulated weightlessness promoting bone loss while magnetic fields themselves appeared protective.
Plain English Summary
Chinese researchers used powerful magnetic fields to simulate weightlessness conditions and study how this affects bone-destroying cells called osteoclasts. They found that simulated microgravity enhanced the formation and bone-eating activity of these cells, while the magnetic field itself had the opposite effect. This research helps explain why astronauts lose bone density in space and provides insights into magnetic field effects on bone health.
Why This Matters
This study reveals something fascinating about magnetic fields and bone health that goes beyond typical EMF research. While most studies focus on radiofrequency radiation from phones and WiFi, this research examined extremely strong magnetic fields used to simulate weightlessness. The findings show that magnetic fields can have complex, sometimes contradictory effects on the same biological system. The simulated zero gravity promoted bone loss, while the magnetic field itself appeared protective. What this means for you is that magnetic field effects on biology are highly dependent on field strength, duration, and the specific biological process being studied. The magnetic fields used here were orders of magnitude stronger than what you encounter from household devices, but the research demonstrates that magnetic fields can indeed influence fundamental cellular processes involved in bone health.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Study Details
In this study, a specially designed superconducting magnet with large gradient high magnetic field (LGHMF), which provides three apparent gravity levels (μg, 1 g, and 2 g), was used to study its influence on receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation from preosteoclast cell line RAW264.7.
The effects of LGHMF on the viability, nitric oxide (NO) production, morphology in RAW264.7 cells we...
The results showed that: 1) LGHMF had no lethal effect on osteoclast precursors but attenuated NO re...
Therefore, these findings indicate that diamagnetic levitation could be used as a novel ground-based microgravity simulator, which facilitates bone cell research of weightlessness condition.
Show BibTeX
@article{yl_2015_diamagnetic_levitation_promotes_osteoclast_1605,
author = {Sun YL and Chen ZH and Chen XH and Yin C and Li DJ and Ma XL and Zhao F and Zhang G and Shang P and Qian AR},
title = {Diamagnetic levitation promotes osteoclast differentiation from RAW264.7 cells},
year = {2015},
url = {https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6954456},
}