Pilot Study of a New Methodology to Study the Development of the Blue Bottle Fly Under Exposure to Radio-

International journal of radiation biology · 2022 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 732

Study snapshot

PublicationInternational journal of radiation biology · 2022

Study typeanimal

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Pilot Study of a New Methodology to Study the Development of the Blue Bottle Fly Under Exposure to Radio- Frequency Fields at 5.4 GHz My note: The SAR for the 19.4 V/m exposure condition was estimated to be 0.028 W/kg. At this SAR, the median delay in pupal emergence was twice as long as in the sham condition. Yet, this full-body SAR is less than the so- called 50-fold safety limit of 0.08 W/kg of full body exposure adopted by the FCC and ICNIRP. Thus, along with numerous other biological studies, this pilot study suggests that current safety limits are not adequate across different species. De Paepe S, De Borre E, Toribio Carvajal D, Bell D, Thielens A. Pilot Study of a New Methodology to Study the Development of the Blue Bottle Fly (Calliphora vomitoria) Under Exposure to Radio-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields at 5.4 GHz. Int J Radiat Biol. 2022 Aug 17:1-49. doi: 10.1080/09553002.2022.2113838. Abstract Purpose – Exposure of insects to radio-frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) can have developmental effects. However, there is currently no clear understanding of the exposure level that can lead to such effects. Therefore, the goal of this study was to, for the first time, study the development of the Blue Bottle Fly (Calliphora vomitoria, CV) under exposure to RF-EMFs at 5.4 GHz, using both numerical RF-EMF dosimetry with anatomically accurate 3D models of insects and an RF-EMF exposure experiment. Materials and Methods - CV was chosen as a model organism in this study because CV’s development can be influenced thermally and CV’s pupal stage presents a window of several days in which immobile pupae can be exposed to RF-EMFs. The 5.4 GHz frequency was used because it allowed us licence-free operation of the exposure setup. Numerical, EM simulations with 3D anatomically accurate models of CV, obtained using micro- CT scanning, were used in this study. These simulations enable the estimation of the absorbed power and the whole-body averaged specific absorption rate in CV during RF exposure experiments. An experiment with three exposure conditions was designed and executed in which 400 pupae were split into an exposed group that was placed inside the TEM cell for 48 h and a concurrent control. Two exposure conditions used RF-EMF input power into the TEM cell at 5.4 GHz on two different levels. One exposure condition was a sham exposure. Electric field strength measurements were used to validate the proper functioning of the exposure setups and to quantify the RF-EMF exposure of the control groups. Results and Conclusions - All studied groups of pupae – exposed to RF-EMFs, sham, and control groups- showed similar (evolutions of) masses, lengths and diameters during their development. The total rate of pupal emergence was reduced in one of the studied RF-EMF exposures in comparison to its concurrent control, while the other RF-EMF exposure and the sham exposure did not alter the total rate of pupal emergence. The sham exposure and the lowest of the two studied RF-EMF exposure conditions (19.4 V/m) caused a median delay in pupal emergence of 4 and 8 hours, respectively, in comparison to concurrent control groups. The higher studied exposure of 55 V/m caused a median relative acceleration in development of 8 h. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typeanimal

Effect directionmixed

PopulationBlue Bottle Fly (Calliphora vomitoria) pupae

Sample size400

ExposureRF · 5400 MHz · 0.028 W/kg · 48 h

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Across groups (RF-exposed, sham, control), masses, lengths, and diameters showed similar (evolutions of) values during development. The total rate of pupal emergence was reduced in one RF-EMF exposure condition versus its concurrent control, while the other RF-EMF exposure and sham did not alter total emergence rate. Relative to concurrent controls, sham and the 19.4 V/m exposure showed median delays in pupal emergence of 4 h and 8 h, respectively, while the 55 V/m exposure showed a median relative acceleration of 8 h.

Outcomes measured

Pupal emergence timing (median delay/acceleration)
Total rate of pupal emergence
Mass during development
Length during development
Diameter during development

Limitations

Pilot study
Exposure level associated with reduced total emergence rate not specified in the abstract
Details on randomization/blinding and statistical methods not provided in the abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "TEM cell (experimental RF-EMF exposure)",
    "frequency_mhz": 5400,
    "sar_wkg": 0.028,
    "duration": "48 h"
  },
  "population": "Blue Bottle Fly (Calliphora vomitoria) pupae",
  "sample_size": 400,
  "outcomes": [
    "Pupal emergence timing (median delay/acceleration)",
    "Total rate of pupal emergence",
    "Mass during development",
    "Length during development",
    "Diameter during development"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Across groups (RF-exposed, sham, control), masses, lengths, and diameters showed similar (evolutions of) values during development. The total rate of pupal emergence was reduced in one RF-EMF exposure condition versus its concurrent control, while the other RF-EMF exposure and sham did not alter total emergence rate. Relative to concurrent controls, sham and the 19.4 V/m exposure showed median delays in pupal emergence of 4 h and 8 h, respectively, while the 55 V/m exposure showed a median relative acceleration of 8 h.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Pilot study",
    "Exposure level associated with reduced total emergence rate not specified in the abstract",
    "Details on randomization/blinding and statistical methods not provided in the abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "Calliphora vomitoria",
    "insect development",
    "pupae",
    "radio-frequency electromagnetic fields",
    "RF-EMF",
    "5.4 GHz",
    "TEM cell",
    "dosimetry",
    "micro-CT",
    "specific absorption rate",
    "pupal emergence"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.35,
      "reason": "Abstract discusses RF-EMF exposure levels and references ICNIRP safety limits in the provided note."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1080/09553002.2022.2113838
PubMed: 35976063

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