OBJECTIVE: In this study, the combined effect of two stressors, namely, electromagnetic fields (EMFs) from mobile phones and fructose consumption, on hypothalamic and hepatic master metabolic regulators of the AMPK/SIRT1-UCP2/FOXO1 pathway were elucidated to delineate the underlying molecular mechanisms of insulin resistance. METHODS: Weaned Wistar rats (28 days old) were divided into 4 groups: Normal, Exposure Only (ExpO), Fructose Only (FruO), and Exposure and Fructose (EF). Each group was provided standard laboratory chow ad libitum for 8 weeks . Additionally, the control groups, namely, the Normal and FruO groups, had unrestricted access to drinking water and fructose solution (15%), respectively. Furthermore, the respective treatment groups, namely, the ExpO and EF groups, received EMF exposure (1,760 MHz, 2 h/day x 8 weeks). In early adulthood, mitochondrial function, insulin receptor signaling, and oxidative stress signals in hypothalamic and hepatic tissues were assessed using western blotting and biochemical analysis. RESULT: In the hypothalamic tissue of EF, SIRT1, FOXO 1, p-PI3K, p-AKT, Complex III, UCP2, MnSOD, and catalase expressions and OXPHOS and GSH activities were significantly decreased ( P < 0.05) compared to the Normal, ExpO, and FruO groups. In hepatic tissue of EF, the p-AMPKα, SIRT1, FOXO1, IRS1, p-PI3K, Complex I, II, III, IV, V, UCP2, and MnSOD expressions and the activity of OXPHOS, SOD, catalase, and GSH were significantly reduced compared to the Normal group ( P < 0.05). CONCLUSION The findings suggest that the combination of EMF exposure and fructose consumption during childhood and adolescence in Wistar rats disrupts the closely interlinked and multi-regulated crosstalk of insulin receptor signals, mitochondrial OXPHOS, and the antioxidant defense system in the hypothalamus and liver.
Humans ; Rats ; Animals ; Adult ; Rats, Wistar ; Fructose/metabolism* ; Catalase ; Receptor, Insulin/metabolism* ; AMP-Activated Protein Kinases/metabolism* ; Electromagnetic Fields/adverse effects* ; Sirtuin 1/metabolism* ; Cell Phone ; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases/metabolism* ; Forkhead Box Protein O1/metabolism* ; Uncoupling Protein 2

With the widespread use of electrical equipment, cognitive functions such as working memory (WM) could be severely affected when people are exposed to 50 Hz electromagnetic fields (EMF) for long term. However, the effects of EMF exposure on WM and its neural mechanism remain unclear. In the present paper, 15 rats were randomly assigned to three groups, and exposed to an EMF environment at 50 Hz and 2 mT for a different duration: 0 days (control group), 24 days (experimental group I), and 48 days (experimental group II). Then, their WM function was assessed by the T-maze task. Besides, their local field potential (LFP) in the media prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was recorded by the in vivo multichannel electrophysiological recording system to study the power spectral density (PSD) of θ and γ oscillations and the phase-amplitude coupling (PAC) intensity of θ-γ oscillations during the T-maze task. The results showed that the PSD of θ and γ oscillations decreased in experimental groups I and II, and the PAC intensity between θ and high-frequency γ (hγ) decreased significantly compared to the control group. The number of days needed to meet the task criterion was more in experimental groups I and II than that of control group. The results indicate that long-term exposure to EMF could impair WM function. The possible reason may be the impaired communication between different rhythmic oscillations caused by a decrease in θ-hγ PAC intensity. This paper demonstrates the negative effects of EMF on WM and reveals the potential neural mechanisms from the changes of PAC intensity, which provides important support for further investigation of the biological effects of EMF and its mechanisms.
Humans ; Rats ; Animals ; Memory, Short-Term/physiology* ; Electromagnetic Fields/adverse effects* ; Prefrontal Cortex ; Cognition

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of exposure to a 900 MHz electromagnetic field (EMF) on the cervical spinal cord (CSC) of rats and the possible protective effect of luteolin (LUT) against CSC tissue damage. Methods: Quantitative data were obtained stereological, biochemical, immunohistochemical, and histopathological techniques. We investigated morphometric value, superoxide dismutase (SOD) level, and the expression of high-mobility group box 1 protein molecules, as well as histological changes. Results: The total number of motor neurons in the EMF group significantly decreased in comparison with that in the control group ( < 0.05). In the EMF + LUT group, we found a significant increase in the total number of motor neurons compared with that in the EMF group ( < 0.05). SOD enzyme activity in the EMF group significantly increased in comparison with that in the control group ( < 0.05). By contrast, the EMF+LUT group exhibited a decrease in SOD level compared with the EMF group ( < 0.05). Conclusion Our results suggested that exposure to EMF could be deleterious to CSC tissues. Furthermore, the protective efficacy of LUT against SC damage might have resulted from the alleviation of oxidative stress caused by EMF.
Animals ; Antioxidants ; pharmacology ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Luteolin ; pharmacology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Spinal Cord ; drug effects ; radiation effects

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of electromagnetic pulses (EMP) on the apoptosis and transforming growth factor beta 3 (TGF-β3) expression of mouse testis tissue.

METHODSThirty-two male BALB/c mice were randomly and equally divided into one control group and three EMP treated groups, which were whole-body exposed to EMP at 200 kV/m with 100, 200, and 400 pulses, respectively. The control group received no treatment. The pathological changes and cell apoptosis in testis tissue were analyzed by TUNEL assay. The mRNA expression of TGF-β3 in testis tissue was determined by RT-PCR, and the protein expression of TGF-β3 was determined by immunohistochemistry and Western blot.

RESULTSNo obvious pathological changes were found in testis tissue after EMP exposure at 200 kV/m with 100 and 200 pulses. However, after EMP exposure with 400 pulses, degeneration and shedding of testis tissue, accompanied by significant increase in apoptosis rate (P < 0.05), was observed. The RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry, and Western blot showed that the expression of TGF-β3 mRNA and protein increased significantly after EMP exposure with 400 pulses as compared with that of the control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONEMP exposure at 200 kV/m with 400 pulses increases the incidence of apoptosis and expression of TGF-β3 in mouse testis tissue, which is potentially one of the mechanisms by which EMP increases blood-testis barrier permeability in mice.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Male ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Testis ; metabolism ; pathology ; Transforming Growth Factor beta3 ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo observe the neurologic damage in rat hippocampus after electromagnetic field (EMF) acute or chronic irradiation and research the protective effects of Chinese medicine diet (CMD) which comprised ferulic acid, ginsenoside, astragalus polysaccharide and rhodiola sachalinensis.

METHODSEighty rats were divided into ten groups (n = 8): normal diet with shame irradiation group (NS), normal diet with chronic irradiation group (NCI), three groups of normal diet with acute irradiation after 3 h, 24 h, 72 h (NAI), Chinese medicine diet with shame irradiation group (CS), Chinese medicine diet with chronic irradiation group (CCI), three groups of Chinese medicine diet with acute irradiation after 3 h, 24 h, 72 h (CAI). The chronic EMF irradiation were performed by electromagnetic wave at 15 W/cm2 for 20 min everyday for 8 weeks continuously. The acute EMF irradiation were performed by electromagnetic wave at 65 W/cm2 for 20 min after feeding with CMD for 8 weeks. The learning and memory were evaluated by Morris water maze before/after electromagnetic wave irradiation. The apoptotic cells in hippocampus was detected by Tunel staining. The peroxidation damage of EMF and the protective effect of CMD intervention were assayed by measuring superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and reactive oxygen species (ROS).

RESULTSThe acute and chronic EMF irradiation disturbed the ability of learning and memory significantly (P < 0.05), CMD intervention markedly antagonized this effect. The apoptotic cells in hippocampus increased evidently after EMF irradiation (P < 0.05), but CMD intervention reduced the apoptotic cells. The acute and chronic EMF irradiation induced the oxidative stress by down-regulating SOD activity, GSH-Px activity, ROS inhibiting and up-regulating the content of MDA obviously (P < 0.05), and CMD intervention reduced peroxidation damage significantly (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe acute and chronic EMF irradiation could initiate neurologic damage in hippocampus. CMD intervention has protective effect on the impaired learning and memory, the neuron apoptosis, the peroxidation damage induced by EMF irradiation. CMD intervention plays a significant protective role in antagonizing neurologic damage in the later stage of acute irradiation and chronic irradiation.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Female ; Hippocampus ; radiation effects ; Male ; Oxidation-Reduction ; Oxidative Stress ; Phytotherapy ; Radiation Injuries, Experimental ; drug therapy ; Rats ; Reactive Oxygen Species

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) exposure on permeability of in vitro blood-brain-barrier (BBB) model.

METHODSAn in vitro BBB model, established by co-culturing brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMVEC) and astroglial cells (AC) isolated from rat brain, was exposed to EMP at 100 kV/m and 400 kV/m, respectively. Permeability of the model was assayed by measuring the transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER) and the horseradish peroxidase (HRP) transmission at different time points. Levels of BBB tight junction-related proteins were measured at 0, 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24 h after EMP exposure by Western blotting.

RESULTSThe TEER level was lower in BBB model group than in control group at 12 h after EMP, exposure which returned to its normal level at 24 h. The 24 h recovery process was triphasic and biphasic respectively after EMP exposure at 100 kV/m and 400 kV/m. Following exposure to 400 kV/m EMP, the HRP permeability increased at 1-12 h and returned to its normal level at 24 h. Western blotting showed that the claudin-5 and ZO-1 protein levels were changed after EMP exposure.

CONCLUSIONEMP exposure at 100 kV/m and 400 kV/m can increase the permeability of in vitro BBB model and BBB tight junction-related proteins such as ZO-1 and claudin-5 may change EMP-induced BBB permeability.

Animals ; Blood-Brain Barrier ; radiation effects ; Capillary Permeability ; radiation effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Female ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

In the past century, there have been many attempts to treat cancer with low levels of electric and magnetic fields. We have developed noninvasive biofeedback examination devices and techniques and discovered that patients with the same tumor type exhibit biofeedback responses to the same, precise frequencies. Intrabuccal administration of 27.12 MHz radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields (EMF), which are amplitude-modulated at tumor-specific frequencies, results in long-term objective responses in patients with cancer and is not associated with any significant adverse effects. Intrabuccal administration allows for therapeutic delivery of very low and safe levels of EMF throughout the body as exemplified by responses observed in the femur, liver, adrenal glands, and lungs. In vitro studies have demonstrated that tumor-specific frequencies identified in patients with various forms of cancer are capable of blocking the growth of tumor cells in a tissue- and tumor-specific fashion. Current experimental evidence suggests that tumor-specific modulation frequencies regulate the expression of genes involved in migration and invasion and disrupt the mitotic spindle. This novel targeted treatment approach is emerging as an appealing therapeutic option for patients with advanced cancer given its excellent tolerability. Dissection of the molecular mechanisms accounting for the anti-cancer effects of tumor-specific modulation frequencies is likely to lead to the discovery of novel pathways in cancer.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; therapy ; Cell Proliferation ; radiation effects ; Electromagnetic Fields ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; therapy ; Magnetic Field Therapy ; adverse effects ; Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; therapy ; Radiation Dosage ; Radio Waves ; Thyroid Neoplasms ; therapy ; Treatment Outcome

Adolescent ; Blood Cell Count ; Child ; Copper ; blood ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Female ; Humans ; Iron ; blood ; Magnesium ; blood ; Male ; Students ; Trace Elements ; blood ; Zinc ; blood

OBJECTIVETo investigate the non-ionizing radiation hazards from physiotherapy equipment in medical institutions and to explore feasible control measures for occupational diseases.

METHODSOn-site measurement and assessment of ultra-high-frequency radiation, high-frequency electromagnetic field, microwave radiation, and laser radiation were carried out in 16 medical institutions using the methods in the Measurement of Physical Agents in Workplace (GBZ/T189-2007).

RESULTSAll the investigated medical institutions failed to take effective protective measures against non-ionizing radiation. Of the 17 ultra-short wave therapy apparatus, 70.6%, 47.1%, and 17.64% had a safe intensity of ultra-high-frequency radiation on the head, chest, and abdomen, respectively. Of the 4 external high-frequency thermotherapy apparatus, 100%, 75%, and 75%had a safe intensity of high-frequency electromagnetic field on the head, chest, and abdomen, respectively. In addition, the intensities of microwave radiation and laser radiation produced by the 18 microwave therapy apparatus and 12 laser therapeutic apparatus met national health standards.

CONCLUSIONThere are non-ionizing radiation hazards from physiotherapy equipment in medical institutions, and effective prevention and control measures are necessary.

Electromagnetic Fields ; Humans ; Microwaves ; adverse effects ; Occupational Exposure ; adverse effects ; statistics & numerical data ; Physical Therapy Modalities ; instrumentation ; Radiation, Nonionizing ; adverse effects

OBJECTIVETo examine the effect of exposure to extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF EMFs) on the liver function of workers.

METHODSThe workers in a factory were selected as subjects, and the recent physical examination data of these workers were collected. The workers aged 20∼40 years and with more than 2 years' working experience were included for analysis; considering the intensity of electromagnetic field, the workers exposed to less electromagnetic radiation were assigned to exposure I group (n = 123), those exposed to more electromagnetic radiation to exposure II group (n = 229), and those not exposed to electromagnetic radiation to control group (n = 212). There were no significant differences in sex, age, height, and body weight between the three groups (P > 0.05). Physical examination, including measurements of direct bilirubin (DBil), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), and albumin, was performed in a health examination center. The intensity of electromagnetic field was measured by EFA-300 power frequency electromagnetic field analyzer, and the intensity of noise by AWA5610D integrating sound level meter.

RESULTSThe intensities of electric field and the magnetic field in exposure II group were significantly higher than those in the exposure I group. The levels of ALT, ALP, AST, GGT and albumin in exposure II group were significantly higher than those in exposure I group and control group. However, the level of direct bilirubin in exposure II group was significantly lower than that in exposure I group and control group.

CONCLUSIONOccupational exposure to ELF EMFs may affect human liver function.

Adult ; Alanine Transaminase ; blood ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; blood ; Bilirubin ; blood ; Electromagnetic Fields ; adverse effects ; Female ; Humans ; Liver ; physiopathology ; Male ; Occupational Exposure ; adverse effects ; Young Adult