FELICIA GRĂDINARIU*, C. GOICEANU*, R. DĂNULESCU*, DORINA CREANGĂ**, CLAUDIA NĂDEJDE**
* Regional Centre of Public Health, Iași, Romania
** Faculty of Physics, „Al.I. Cuza” University, Iași, Romania
The subtle interaction of electromagnetic field (EMF) with the biological matrix might also involve lipidperoxidative processes. Health effects of low-level EMF were studied in a mice short-term experiment. Animals were exposed to an unmodulated ultra high frequency field with a power density of 1 mW/cm2, producing microwaves (MW) comparable to those emitted by mobile phones. After 15 days of exposure during respectively 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 hours/day, animals were sacrificed and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were assayed in liver and backlimb muscle. TBARS augmented in both tissues directly with exposure length, excepting the group exposed 12 hours/day where it drawn towards control level. Muscle SOD activity was inhibited compared to controls, more intensely in the shorter daily exposed animals. In liver, the higher inhibition rate was observed in the longer exposed groups, probably due to the complex detoxifying and metabolic tasks of this organ. In this experiment, an imbalance in oxidant status consecutive to exposure to EMF could be detected. These changes lead also to some adaptive responses. Further studies are needed, on greater number of animals and during longer period of time, to describe the overall effects of MW upon living organisms.
Corresponding author’s e-mail: feligradin@yahoo.com
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