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No effects of intermittent 50 Hz EMF on cytoplasmic free calcium and on the mitochondrial membrane potential in human diploid fibroblasts

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Abstract

The recently described increase in DNA strand breaks of cultured human diploid fibroblasts after intermittent exposure to extremely-low-frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF-EMF) of more than about 70 µT ELF-EMF is difficult to explain by a direct induction of covalent bond disruption. Therefore the hypothesis has been tested that ELF-EMF-induced DNA strand breaks might be mediated by cellular processes that cause alteration of the intracellular concentration of free calcium ([Ca2+]i) and/or the membrane potential (ΔΨm). [Ca2+]i was determined by the ratiometric fura-2 technique. Changes in ΔΨm were assessed by using the potential-dependent lipophilic cationic probe JC-1. Human fibroblasts were exposed to intermittent ELF-EMF (50 Hz, 1000 µT). Although exposure of fiboblasts to ELF-EMF resulted in a highly significant increase in DNA strand breaks as determined by the comet assay, no effect on JC-1 fluorescence emission or on [Ca2+]i has been observed when comparing exposed with sham-exposed cells. Therefore, it is suggested that ELF-EMF-induced DNA strand breaks are unlikely to be caused by intracellular changes that affect [Ca2+]i and/or ΔΨm.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by a grant of the European Union under the programme “Quality of Life and Management of Living Resources”, Key Action 4 “Environment and Health”: QLK4-CT-1999–01574.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Occupational Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Währinger Gürtel 18–20, 1090 , Vienna, Austria

    Alexander Pilger, Sabine Ivancsits, Elisabeth Diem & Hugo W. Rüdiger

  2. Institute of Biophysics, University of Hannover, Herrenhäuserstrasse 2, 30419 , Hannover, Germany

    Melanie Steffens & Hans-Albert Kolb

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  1. Alexander Pilger
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  2. Sabine Ivancsits
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  3. Elisabeth Diem
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  4. Melanie Steffens
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  5. Hans-Albert Kolb
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  6. Hugo W. Rüdiger
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Correspondence to Alexander Pilger.

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Pilger, A., Ivancsits, S., Diem, E. et al. No effects of intermittent 50 Hz EMF on cytoplasmic free calcium and on the mitochondrial membrane potential in human diploid fibroblasts. Radiat Environ Biophys 43, 203–207 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-004-0252-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-004-0252-9

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