Brain & Nervous System

Epilepsy but not mobile phone frequency (900 MHz) induces apoptosis and calcium entry in hippocampus of epileptic rat: involvement of TRPV1 channels.

Nazıroğlu M, Özkan FF, Hapil SR, Ghazizadeh V, Çiğ B · 2015

Dosimetry for infant exposures to electronic article surveillance system: Posture, physical dimension and anatomy.

Li C, Wu T. · 2015

Researchers numerically compared dosimetric results among adult, child, and infant models to evaluate infant exposure to magnetic fields from an electronic article surveillance system operating at 125 kHz and 13.56 MHz. Postures did not significantly influence dosimetric results when the cross-sectional area under exposure was similar. Infants showed higher SAR values for brain and central nervous system tissues compared with adults, 1.5x at 125 kHz and 112x at 13.56 MHz, though safety limits were unlikely to be exceeded. The infant's specific anatomy, such as a non-proportionally large head and high fat content, did not lead to higher SAR values.

Spontaneous magnetic alignment by yearling snapping turtles: rapid association of radio frequency dependent pattern of magnetic input with novel surroundings.

Landler L, Painter MS, Youmans PW, Hopkins WA, Phillips JB. · 2015

Researchers investigated spontaneous magnetic alignment in juvenile snapping turtles by exposing them to low-level radio frequency fields at the Larmor frequency. Turtles first placed in the testing arena without RF aligned to magnetic north when later tested without RF, but became disoriented when RF was turned on during testing. Conversely, turtles introduced with RF present were disoriented when tested without RF, yet aligned to magnetic south when tested with RF.

Analysis on the Effect of the Distances and Inclination Angles between Human Head and Mobile Phone on SAR.

Hossain MI, Faruque MRI, Islam MT. · 2015

Researchers used computer simulation to study how distance and angle between a human head model and a phone antenna affect specific absorption rate (SAR). Increasing the distance between the head model and antenna decreased SAR values. Increasing the inclination angle did not reduce SAR values in all cases. The study also examined the effect of a metal-glass phone casing on SAR near the head model. Antenna performance was checked by measuring return loss in all cases.

Enhancement of Cortical Network Activity in vitro and Promotion of GABAergic Neurogenesis by Stimulation with an Electromagnetic Field with a 150 MHz Carrier Wave Pulsed with an Alternating 10 and 16 Hz Modulation.

Gramowski-Voß A et al. · 2015

Researchers exposed differentiating murine cortical networks on multiwell microelectrode arrays to an extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field with alternating 10 and 16 Hz modulation on a 150 MHz carrier. The development of cortical activity was accelerated under these exposure conditions. The percentage of neurons in the co-culture increased without changing the total cell count, indicating enhanced neurogenesis. ELEMF exposure selectively promoted the proliferation of GABAergic neurons, increasing their proportion. The exposure also stimulated electrical network activity and intensified burst structure.

Frequent cellular phone use modifies hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to a cellular phone call after mental stress in healthy children and adolescents: A pilot study.

Geronikolou SA et al. · 2015

Bedtime mobile phone use and sleep in adults.

Exelmans L, Van den Bulck J. · 2015

Pooled analysis of Swedish case-control studies during 1997 2003 and 2007-2009 on meningioma risk associated with the use of mobile and cordless phones.

Carlberg M, Hardell L. · 2015

Researchers conducted a pooled analysis of two case-control studies on meningioma diagnosed during 1997-2003 and 2007-2009. In the highest decile of use (>3,358 hours), odds ratios were 1.5 for mobile phones and 2.0 for cordless phones. No association was found for ipsilateral use or anatomical tumor location.

Impact of a Small Cell on the RF-EMF Exposure in a Train.

Aerts S, Plets D, Thielens A, Martens L, Joseph W. · 2015

Researchers assessed RF-EMF exposure of a mobile-phone user connected to either an outdoor macrocell or an in-train small cell while traveling on a train. The study used the absorbed-dose concept combining base station downlink exposure with mobile-phone uplink exposure. For GSM at 1800 MHz, connecting to a small cell reduced brain exposure by a factor of 35 and whole-body exposure by a factor of 11.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex reduces cocaine use: A pilot study.

Terraneo A et al. · 2015

Thirty-two cocaine-addicted patients were randomly assigned to receive repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex or pharmacological agents for 29 days, followed by a 63-day follow-up where all were offered stimulation. During Stage 1, the stimulation group had significantly more cocaine-free urine drug tests than the control group (p=0.004). Craving for cocaine was significantly lower in the stimulation group compared to controls (p=0.038). No significant adverse events were noted.

Effect of electromagnetic field on cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) in a human mu-opioid receptor cell model.

Ross CL, Teli T, Harrison BS. · 2015

Researchers stimulated cAMP in CHO cells transfected with human mu-opioid receptors and exposed them to 5 Hz EMF. The 5 Hz EMF produced 23% greater inhibition of cAMP-treating cells than morphine treatment. When tested at 13 Hz, EMF produced results similar to controls.

Common behaviors alterations after extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field exposure in rat animal model.

Mahdavi SM, Sahraei H, Rezaei-Tavirani M, Najafi Abedi A. · 2015

Rats were exposed to 40 Hz ELF-EMF once a day for 21 days and assessed at days 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 after exposure. Body weight significantly increased only at one week after exposure and then decreased. Food and water intake did not change significantly, while anorexia significantly decreased at one and two weeks after irradiation. Plasma glucose significantly increased at one week but not at other time points. Movements, rearing, and sniffing were significantly decreased at day 1 after exposure, with no consistent pattern on other days.

Occupational exposures and risk of dementia-related mortality in the prospective Netherlands Cohort Study.

Koeman T et al. · 2015

Researchers analyzed occupational exposures to solvents, pesticides, metals, ELF-MF, electrical shocks, and diesel motor exhaust on non-vascular dementia mortality in the Netherlands Cohort Study. Exposures were assigned using job-exposure matrices and after 17.3 years of follow-up, 682 male and 870 female cases were available. Positive associations were found for metals, chlorinated solvents, and ELF-MF with non-vascular dementia among men, while pesticide exposure showed inverse associations and no associations were found for shocks, aromatic solvents, and diesel motor exhaust.

Occupational exposures and Parkinson's disease mortality in a prospective Dutch cohort.

Brouwer M et al. · 2015

Researchers investigated six occupational exposures and Parkinson's disease mortality in a Dutch cohort of 58,279 men and 62,573 women followed for 17.3 years. A case-cohort design with a random subcohort of 5,000 participants used job-exposure matrices and Cox regression. Among men, high exposure to pesticides and extremely low frequency magnetic fields showed elevated hazard ratios for Parkinson's disease mortality. No association with exposure duration or cumulative exposure trend was observed for any exposure. Results in women were unstable due to few highly exposed women, and no associations were found for solvents, metals, diesel motor emissions, or electric shocks.

Pre-exposure of neuroblastoma cell line to pulsed electromagnetic field prevents H2 O2 -induced ROS production by increasing MnSOD activity.

Osera C et al. · 2015

Researchers assessed whether short repeated pulsed EMF could trigger adaptive responses against oxidative insult in a neuronal cell model. A 40-minute overall pre-exposure, given as four 10-minute sessions per week, increased Mn-dependent superoxide dismutase activity in human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells without affecting major physiological parameters. Pre-exposed cells showed decreased reactive oxygen species production after a 30-minute hydrogen peroxide challenge compared to non-pre-exposed cells. The authors suggest that specific PEMF treatments may have potential biological repercussions in diseases where oxidative stress is implicated.

Memory performance, wireless communication and exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields: A prospective cohort study in adolescents

Schoeni A, Roser K, Röösli M · 2015

Researchers conducted a prospective cohort study with 439 adolescents who completed verbal and figural memory tasks at baseline and after one year. Wireless device use was assessed by questionnaire and operator recorded mobile phone use data for a subgroup of 234 adolescents, and RF-EMF dose measures for the brain and whole body were computed. Higher cumulative call duration and RF-EMF brain and whole-body doses were linked to lower figural memory scores. No exposure-response associations were observed for sending text messages and gaming, and memory change over one year was negatively associated with wireless phone use and more strongly with RF-EMF dose.

Deleterious impacts of a 900MHz electromagnetic field on hippocampal pyramidal neurons of 8-week-old Sprague Dawley male rats

Şahin A et al. · 2015

The study consisted of control, sham-exposed, and EMF-exposed groups with six rats in each. The EMF-exposed group received 900 MHz EMF for 1 hour per day for 30 days while the sham group was placed in the same jar without exposure. Stereological analysis revealed a significantly lower total number of pyramidal neurons in the cornu ammonis of EMF-exposed rats compared to both control and sham groups, and histopathology showed abnormal cells with dark cytoplasm and shrunken morphology.

Effects of chronic exposure to electromagnetic waves on the auditory system.

Özgür A et al. · 2015

Twelve adult Wistar albino rats were divided into two groups of six, with one group exposed to electromagnetic waves for 30 days and the other serving as unexposed controls. Histological analysis revealed neuronal degeneration signs such as increased vacuolization, pyknotic cells, and edema in the cochlear nucleus of exposed rats. Auditory brainstem response wave latencies did not differ between the exposed and control groups. The authors concluded that chronic electromagnetic field exposure may cause damage by leading to neuronal degeneration of the auditory system.

The Screening of Genes Sensitive to Long-Term, Low-Level Microwave Exposure and Bioinformatic Analysis of Potential Correlations to Learning and Memory.

Zhao YL et al. · 2015

Mice were exposed to whole-body 2100 MHz microwaves at SARs of 0.45, 1.8, and 3.6 W/kg for 1 hour daily for 8 weeks. GO analysis showed the genes were involved in metabolic processes, cellular metabolic processes, regulation of biological processes, macromolecular metabolic processes, biosynthetic processes, cellular protein metabolic processes, transport, developmental processes, and cellular component organization. KEGG pathway analysis revealed enrichment in ribosome, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, long-term potentiation, Huntington's disease, and Neurotrophin signaling pathways.

No Changes in Cerebral Microcirculatory Parameters in Rat During Local Cortex Exposure to Microwaves

Masuda H et al. · 2015

The cortex tissue targeted was locally exposed to 1439 MHz RF using a figure-8 loop antenna at an averaged specific absorption rate of 2.0 W/kg in the target area for 50 min. Three microcirculatory parameters related to cerebral inflammation were measured by the cranial window method in real-time under RF exposure. No extravasation of intravenously injected fluorescent dye was observed during RF exposure. There was no significant difference either in pial venule blood flow velocity or diameter between exposed and sham-exposed rats. Histological evaluation for the brain immediately after RF exposure did not reveal any serum albumin leakage sites or degenerate neurons.

Effects of chronic exposure to 950 MHz ultra-high-frequency electromagnetic radiation on reactive oxygen species metabolism in the right and left cerebral cortex of young rats of different ages.

Furtado-Filho OV et al. · 2015

Researchers exposed young rats to 950 MHz ultra-high-frequency electromagnetic radiation to measure oxidative damage to DNA, proteins, and lipids in the left and right cerebral cortex. Radiation exposure lasted 30 minutes per day for up to 27 days, with a specific absorption rate ranging from 1.32 to 1.14 W/kg. In neonates, no modification of the biomarkers tested was detected, while 6-day-old exposed rats showed increased carbonylated proteins in the right cerebral cortex and decreased blood glucose. The researchers concluded that the elevated carbonylated proteins in the right cerebral cortex did not appear to be a consequence of oxidative stress.

Effect of Short-term 900 MHz low level electromagnetic radiation exposure on blood serotonin and glutamate levels.

Eris AH et al. · 2015

Researchers exposed ten male Wistar Albino rats to 900 MHz electromagnetic radiation at 15.14 V/m for 45 minutes and measured blood serotonin and glutamate levels before and after. Blood plasma serotonin and glutamate levels were measured using enzyme immunoassay. A single 45-minute exposure significantly increased blood serotonin levels but did not change glutamate levels.

Neuritin reverses deficits in murine novel object associative recognition memory caused by exposure to extremely low-frequency (50 Hz) electromagnetic fields.

Zhao QR, Lu JM, Yao JJ, Zhang ZY, Ling C, Mei YA. · 2015

Researchers used a mouse model to examine the effects of extremely low-frequency (50 Hz) electromagnetic field exposure on a recognition memory task and morphological changes of hippocampal neurons. Exposure at 1 mT for 12 hours per day produced a time-dependent deficit in novel object associative recognition memory and decreased hippocampal dendritic spine density. The memory deficit was transient, observed only after exposing mice to the fields for 7 to 10 days, and occurred without changes in spontaneous locomotor activity. Over-expression of neuritin in the hippocampus using an adeno-associated virus vector significantly increased neuritin levels and dendritic spine density, and neuritin prevented the exposure-induced effect by increasing hippocampal spine density.

Exposure to 50 Hz magnetic field modulates GABAA currents in cerebellar granule neurons through an EP receptor-mediated PKC pathway.

Yang G, Ren Z, Mei YA. · 2015

Researchers studied the effects of 50 Hz magnetic fields on GABAA receptor activity in rat cerebellar granule neurons. Exposing the neurons to 1 mT of the field for 60 minutes significantly increased GABAA receptor currents without modifying sensitivity to GABA. Levels of phosphorylated PKC were significantly elevated after 60 minutes of exposure, and this elevation was blocked by an EP1 receptor-specific antagonist.

Effects of two different waveforms of ELF MFs on bioelectrical activity of antennal lobe neurons of Morimus funereus (Insecta, Coleoptera).

Todorović D, Prolić Z, Petković B, Kalauzi A. · 2015

Researchers analyzed the bioelectrical activity of antennal lobe neurons in adult Morimus funereus beetles exposed to extremely low frequency magnetic fields of different waveforms and exposure durations. Sine wave magnetic fields did not change the reversibility factor of antennal lobe neuronal activity regardless of exposure duration, while square wave exposure for 10 and 15 minutes significantly changed the reversibility factors of the nearest neurons.