Masoudian N et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed synaptosomes, used as a model of nervous terminals, to extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF-EMF) at flux intensities from 0.1 to 2 mT and frequencies from 50 to 230 Hz. An artificial neural network program was used to analyze the raw data and predict effects across the tested range. Glutamate concentration changes fell between -35 and +40% compared to normal state, which the researchers interpreted as the glutamatergic system attempting to compensate for environmental changes.
Liu X et al. · 2015
Researchers studied the effects of ELF-EMF exposure on Alzheimer's disease development in rats. The rats were exposed to ELF-EMF at 50 Hz and 400 µT for 60 days. ELF-EMF exposure delayed the weight gain of rats and partially improved cognitive and clinicopathologic symptoms. The researchers concluded that certain conditions of ELF-EMF exposure could delay the development of AD in rats.
Legros A, Modolo J, Brown S, Roberston J, Thomas AW. · 2015
Researchers used functional MRI to look for changes in brain activation in human participants following exposure to a 60 Hz magnetic field. The study found significant changes in task-induced functional brain activation as a consequence of magnetic field exposure, but no impact on task performance. The researchers discussed the possibility that exposure at 60 Hz, 3000 μT may be capable of modulating cortical excitability via a modulation of synaptic plasticity processes.
Jankowska M et al. · 2015
Researchers assumed that exposure to ELF-EMF would change the effects of a scorpion alpha toxin called LqhαIT on cockroach nerve function and on whole insects. Experiments were performed in vivo on cockroaches (Periplaneta americana) and in vitro on isolated cockroach abdominal nerve cord with cerci. The exposure to ELF-EMF modified the effects of LqhαIT on activity of the cercal nerve and of the connective nerve, with a decrease in the toxin effect on the cercal nerve but an increase on the connective nerve. Biotests showed that toxicity of LqhαIT on cockroaches was reduced by the exposure to ELF-EMF at 0.7 and 7 mT.
Giorgetto C et al. · 2015
Researchers studied motor behaviour in Wistar rats given a unilateral striatal lesion with quinolinic acid, then injected with apomorphine and exposed to a continuous static magnetic field of 3,200 Gauss. Sixty-eight male Wistar rats were divided into six groups: control, sham, sham magnetic, lesion, and stimulated South and North Poles. In the activity cage test, all groups except the North Pole-stimulated group showed a significant increase in distance, time of activity, and crossings compared to the control group. The morphometric analysis showed a reduction in the number of neurons in the Lesion group in relation to all other groups, and the results suggest the static magnetic field promoted morphological preservation.
de Groot MW, van Kleef RG, de Groot A, Westerink RH · 2015
Researchers exposed primary rat cortical neurons for 7 days to 50 Hz ELF-EMF at field strengths ranging from 0 to 1000 μT, then measured cell viability, calcium levels, neurite outgrowth, and spontaneous neuronal activity. Cell viability was not affected by exposure across the full range tested, and neuronal activity appeared largely unaltered. The researchers concluded that chronic ELF-EMF exposure has only limited neurotoxic potential in vitro.
Cheng Y et al. · 2015
Researchers examined the effects of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields on hippocampal neural progenitor cells cultured from embryonic and adult ischemic brains. Exposure to ELF-EMF at 50 Hz and 0.4 mT significantly enhanced proliferation in both embryonic and ischemic neural progenitor cells. Neuronal differentiation was also enhanced after 7 days of cumulative ELF-EMF exposure, while glial differentiation was not markedly influenced. The data suggest that ELF-EMF promotes neurogenesis of ischemic neural progenitor cells, possibly through the Akt pathway.
Zuo WQ, Hu YJ, Yang Y, Zhao XY, Zhang YY, Kong W, Kong WJ. · 2015
Researchers used spiral ganglion neurons from neonatal Sprague Dawley rats to investigate whether inflammation might increase sensitivity to damage from mobile phone electromagnetic radiation. Radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation alone could not directly induce DNA damage in normal spiral ganglion neurons. The study suggests that sensitivity of spiral ganglion neurons to damage caused by mobile phone electromagnetic radiation may increase in a lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammation model.
Wang X et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed Neuro-2a cells to 900 MHz GSM signals at specific absorption rates of 0, 0.5, 1, or 2 W/kg for 24 hours, with or without silencing of the DNA repair enzyme OGG1. Without OGG1 silencing, 2 W/kg RF-EMFs induced oxidative DNA base damage, and with OGG1 silencing, damage was observed at exposures as low as 1 W/kg. Increases in oxidative DNA base damage were accompanied by similar increases in reactive oxygen species, but neither DNA strand breakage nor altered cell viability was observed.
Ghodbane S, Ammari M, Lahbib A, Sakly M, Abdelmelek H. · 2015
Researchers exposed rats to a static magnetic field of 128 mT for one hour per day over five consecutive days and measured oxidative stress and apoptosis in the brain and liver. The exposure increased catalase activity by 24% in the liver but not in the brain, while malondialdehyde concentration was unchanged in both tissues. Static magnetic field exposure also induced hepatocyte apoptosis through a caspase-independent pathway involving mitochondrial apoptosis-inducing factor, but no such effect was found in the brain. Selenium and vitamin E supplementation restored liver catalase activity in exposed rats but did not reduce liver apoptosis.
Chung YH et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed rats to an extremely low frequency magnetic field at 60 Hz and 2.0 mT for 2 or 5 days, then measured neurotransmitter levels in the cortex, striatum, thalamus, cerebellum and hippocampus. The exposure produced significant differences in norepinephrine and vanillyl mandelic acid in the striatum, thalamus, cerebellum and hippocampus. Significant increases in serotonin and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid were observed in the striatum, thalamus or hippocampus, and dopamine concentration was significantly increased in the thalamus. The researchers concluded that exposure to ELF-MF may evoke changes in these brain chemicals, though the mechanisms remain to be characterized.
Zuo H et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed differentiated PC12 cells to continuous microwave radiation at 2.856 GHz for 5 minutes with an average power density of 30 mW/cm2. After exposure, RKIP was downregulated while the MEK/ERK/CREB signaling pathway was activated excessively. The ratio of Bcl-2/Bax decreased, caspase-3 activity increased, and apoptotic DNA fragmentation increased. The researchers suggested that RKIP may act as a key regulator of neuronal damage caused by microwave radiation.
Zhang Y, Li Z, Gao Y, Zhang C. · 2015
Researchers investigated whether in utero exposure to 9.417-GHz microwave throughout gestation affected behavior in mouse offspring. Offspring showed less movement in the center of an open field and in an open arm of the elevated-plus maze, which the researchers interpreted as increased anxiety-related behavior. Offspring also showed reduced immobility in the tail suspension test and forced swimming test, which was interpreted as decreased depression-related behavior. In the Morris water maze, male offspring showed decreased learning and memory while female offspring were not affected, suggesting gender-dependent effects.
Xiong L et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed 48 male Wistar rats to 30 mW/cm2 microwave for 10 min every other day for three times, and separately exposed PC12 cells to 30 mW/cm2 microwave for 5 min. Microwave exposure caused injury in rat hippocampal structure and PC12 cells, especially the structure and quantity of synapses. The ratio of glutamic acid and gamma-aminobutyric acid neurotransmitters was increased and the intracellular calcium level was elevated in PC12 cells. Significant changes in NMDA receptor subunits NR1, NR2A, and NR2B and related signaling molecules were observed, and these were closely associated with impaired synaptic plasticity.
Wang LF et al. · 2015
Researchers used an in vitro blood-brain barrier model exposed to microwave radiation at 50 mW/cm2 for 5 minutes to study how the VEGF/Flk-1-ERK pathway relates to barrier injury. Microwave radiation caused tight junctions to broaden and fracture, with decreased TEER values and increased HRP permeability. When Flk-1 and MEK1/2 inhibitors were applied, the structure and function of the blood-brain barrier were recovered.
Tang J et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed 108 male Sprague-Dawley rats to a 900 MHz, 1 mW/cm2 electromagnetic field for 14 or 28 days at 3 hours per day, with some rats left unexposed as a sham group. Rats exposed for 28 days crossed platforms less often and spent less time in the target quadrant than rats exposed for 14 days and unexposed rats. Twenty-eight days of exposure was also associated with cellular edema, neuronal cell organelle degeneration, and albumin and HO-1 extravasation in the hippocampus and cortex. The researchers found that 28 days of EMF exposure induced the expression of mkp-1, resulting in ERK dephosphorylation.
Roggeveen S, van Os J, Lousberg R · 2015
Researchers investigated whether third generation mobile phone radiation peaks produce event-related potentials in the brain. Thirty-one healthy females took part in a single-blind, cross-over design where a 15 minute mobile phone exposure was compared to two 15 minute sham phone conditions. When the phone was placed at the ear, an enlarged cortical reactivity was found in the frontal and central cortical regions, but not when it was placed at the heart.
Roggeveen S, van Os J, Viechtbauer W, Lousberg R · 2015
Researchers investigated whether placement of a 3G dialing mobile phone causes direct changes in EEG activity compared to placement of a sham phone. Thirty-one healthy females each participated on two days, with the phone placed at the ear on one day and the chest on the other. Significant radiation effects were found for the alpha, slow beta, fast beta, and gamma bands, with ear placement showing significant results and chest placement not.
Narayanan SN, Kumar RS, Karun KM, Nayak SB, Bhat PG · 2015
Megha K et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed Fischer rats to 900 MHz and 1800 MHz microwave radiation for 30 days at 2 hours per day, 5 days per week, with specific absorption rates of 5.953 × 10−4 and 5.835 × 10−4 W/kg respectively. Levels of dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine, and serotonin were measured in the hippocampus using LC–MS/MS. Exposed animals showed significant reductions in DA, NE, E and 5-HT, and significant downregulation in mRNA expression of TH, TPH1, and TPH2 compared with sham-exposed animals (p < 0.05).
Lustenberger et al. · 2015
The study investigated how much variation exists between individuals and within the same individual in response to pulsed radiofrequency electromagnetic field exposure during sleep. The EEG analysis showed exposure-related increases in the delta-theta frequency range at several fronto-central electrodes, but no differences in the spindle frequency range. Reproducible within-subject effects on sleep spindle and delta-theta activity were not observed, and it remained unclear whether a biological trait of how subjects' brains react to RF EMF exists.
Lee D, Lee J, Lee I. · 2015
Researchers tracked the movement of 10 pairs of guppies and 15 pairs of zebrafish in a fish tank under a cell phone-generated RF EMF. Fish locomotion was observed under normal conditions, in the visual presence of a cell phone, after feeding, and under starvation. Fish locomotor behavior was random both in normal conditions and in the presence of an off-signaled cell phone, but there were significant changes in locomotion after feeding under the RF EMF. The researchers also demonstrated that temperature elevation caused by the cell phone was not relevant to the observed effects.
Ghosn R et al. · 2015
Researchers recorded resting EEG in 26 healthy young subjects under sham and real RF exposure conditions in a double-blind, counterbalanced, crossover design. Compared with the sham session, the exposure session showed a statistically significant decrease of alpha band spectral power during the closed-eyes condition. This effect persisted in the postexposure session, and no significant changes were detected in electrode impedance, salivary cortisol, or caffeine between conditions.
Deshmukh PS et al. · 2015
Researchers exposed male Fischer rats to microwave radiation for 180 days at 3 different frequencies, namely, 900, 1800 MHz, and 2450 MHz. The study investigated effects on cognitive function, heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), and DNA damage in rat brain. The results showed declined cognitive function, elevated HSP70 level, and DNA damage in the brains of microwave-exposed animals. The researchers concluded that chronic low-intensity microwave exposure in the frequency range of 900 to 2450 MHz may cause hazardous effects on the brain.
Danker-Hopfe H et al. · 2015
Researchers conducted a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled cross-over study to examine whether electromagnetic fields from GSM 900 and WCDMA/UMTS devices affected sleep. Thirty healthy young men between 18 and 30 years old were each exposed three times per exposure condition while their sleep was recorded. The only consistent finding across individuals was an increase of stage R sleep under GSM 900 MHz exposure in 9 of 30 subjects and under WCDMA/UMTS exposure in 10 of 30 subjects.
