Scrutinizing the Impact of Alternating Electromagnetic Fields on Molecular Features of the Model Plant Arabidopsis thaliana

2022 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 824

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2022

Study typeanimal

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Scrutinizing the Impact of Alternating Electromagnetic Fields on Molecular Features of the Model Plant Arabidopsis thaliana Sonja Michèle Schmidtpott, Saliba Danho, Vijay Kumar, Thorsten Seidel, Wolfgang Schöllhorn, Karl-Josef Dietz. Scrutinizing the Impact of Alternating Electromagnetic Fields on Molecular Features of the Model Plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Apr 23;19(9):5144. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19095144. Abstract Natural and anthropogenic electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are ubiquitous in the environment and interfere with all biological organisms including plants. Particularly the quality and quantity of alternating EMFs from anthropogenic sources are increasing due to the implementation of novel technologies. There is a significant interest in exploring the impact of EMFs (similar to those emitted from battery chargers of electric cars) on plants. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana was exposed to a composite alternating EMF program for 48 h and scrutinized for molecular alterations using photosynthetic performance, metabolite profiling, and RNA sequencing followed by qRT-PCR validation. Clear differences in the photosynthetic parameters between the treated and control plants indicated either lower nonphotochemical quenching or higher reduction of the plastoquinone pool or both. Transcriptome analysis by RNA sequencing revealed alterations in transcript amounts upon EMF exposure; however, the gene ontology groups of, e.g., chloroplast stroma, thylakoids, and envelope were underrepresented. Quantitative real-time PCR validated deregulation of some selected transcripts. More profound were the readjustments in metabolite pool sizes with variations in photosynthetic and central energy metabolism. These findings together with the invariable phenotype indicate efficient adjustment of the physiological state of the EMF-treated plants, suggesting testing for more challenging growth conditions in future experiments. Conclusions EMF exposure occurs ubiquitously on Earth and is a regular environmental parameter all life forms have to deal with. Anthropogenic alternating and rapidly changing EMF emission accentuate the requirement to research the EMF–life and, as conducted here, EMF–plant interaction. The data show that alternating EMF-exposed plants undergo significant alterations at the levels of photosynthesis, transcriptome, and metabolome. The underlying perception and response mechanisms to weak EMF still need deeper scrutiny and could involve changes in cell signaling, e.g., by interfering with Ca2+ fluxes and concentrations [57]. The changes in photosynthetic features are remarkable particularly since the gross growth parameters were unaltered. A profound metabolic readjustment was detectable upon EMF exposure that would merit further experiments, both in the context of photosynthesis and respiratory energy metabolism. The growth conditions with about 5% of full sunlight (100 µmol photons.m−2 s−1) might not be ideal to work out possible negative effects of the EMF treatment on plant performance. In future experiments, it would be worthwhile to combine such EMF treatments with challenging growth conditions, e.g., by growth in saturating light or combinatorial stress applications [58]. Future experiments could also include the study of early development such as seed germination and seedling establishment similar to [57]. Open access paper: mdpi.com

Machine Enhanced Logic

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

PopulationArabidopsis thaliana (model plant)

Sample sizeNot supplied

Exposure48 h

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

After 48 h exposure to a composite alternating EMF program, treated Arabidopsis thaliana showed differences in photosynthetic parameters versus controls (interpreted as lower nonphotochemical quenching and/or higher reduction of the plastoquinone pool). RNA-seq indicated altered transcript amounts with some selected transcripts validated by qRT-PCR, and metabolite pool sizes showed more pronounced readjustments, while gross growth parameters/phenotype were unaltered.

Outcomes measured

photosynthetic performance/parameters (including nonphotochemical quenching; plastoquinone pool reduction state)
metabolite profiling / metabolome changes (photosynthetic and central energy metabolism)
RNA sequencing transcriptome changes
qRT-PCR validation of selected transcripts
phenotype/gross growth parameters

Limitations

EMF exposure characteristics (e.g., frequency, field strength, SAR) not reported in the provided abstract
Sample size not reported in the provided abstract
Growth conditions (~5% of full sunlight; 100 µmol photons m−2 s−1) may not be ideal to reveal negative effects, per authors
Mechanisms underlying responses to weak EMF remain unclear, per authors

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "battery chargers of electric cars (similar emissions)",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "48 h"
  },
  "population": "Arabidopsis thaliana (model plant)",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "photosynthetic performance/parameters (including nonphotochemical quenching; plastoquinone pool reduction state)",
    "metabolite profiling / metabolome changes (photosynthetic and central energy metabolism)",
    "RNA sequencing transcriptome changes",
    "qRT-PCR validation of selected transcripts",
    "phenotype/gross growth parameters"
  ],
  "main_findings": "After 48 h exposure to a composite alternating EMF program, treated Arabidopsis thaliana showed differences in photosynthetic parameters versus controls (interpreted as lower nonphotochemical quenching and/or higher reduction of the plastoquinone pool). RNA-seq indicated altered transcript amounts with some selected transcripts validated by qRT-PCR, and metabolite pool sizes showed more pronounced readjustments, while gross growth parameters/phenotype were unaltered.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "EMF exposure characteristics (e.g., frequency, field strength, SAR) not reported in the provided abstract",
    "Sample size not reported in the provided abstract",
    "Growth conditions (~5% of full sunlight; 100 µmol photons m−2 s−1) may not be ideal to reveal negative effects, per authors",
    "Mechanisms underlying responses to weak EMF remain unclear, per authors"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "alternating electromagnetic fields",
    "Arabidopsis thaliana",
    "photosynthesis",
    "nonphotochemical quenching",
    "plastoquinone pool",
    "metabolomics",
    "metabolite profiling",
    "RNA sequencing",
    "transcriptome",
    "qRT-PCR",
    "electric car battery charger emissions"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": []
}

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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: 10.3390/ijerph19095144
PubMed: Not supplied

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