LF-EMF Compound Block Type Signal Activates Human Neutrophilic Granulocytes In Vivo

Bioelectromagnetics · 2022 · Benefit · Moderate evidence

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BenefitModerate evidencePaper 851

In a randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study, exposure to a nominal 5 μT low-frequency EMF signal for 30 minutes was associated with a significant decrease in neutrophil granularity in blood samples taken before vs after exposure, interpreted as neutro…

Study snapshot

PublicationBioelectromagnetics · 2022

Study typerandomized_trial

Reported directionBenefit

Evidence ratingModerate

Abstract

LF-EMF Compound Block Type Signal Activates Human Neutrophilic Granulocytes In Vivo Jan J M Cuppen, Cristian Gradinaru, Bregje E Raap-van Sleuwen, Anna C E de Wit, Ton A A J van der Vegt, Huub F J Savelkoul. LF-EMF Compound Block Type Signal Activates Human Neutrophilic Granulocytes In Vivo. Bioelectromagnetics. 2022 Apr 28. doi: 10.1002/bem.22406. Abstract This research aims to demonstrate in a randomized, placebo-controlled crossover design study that a nominal 5 μT low-frequency electromagnetic field (LF-EMF) signal for 30 min activates neutrophils in vivo in humans. Granularity of neutrophils was measured in blood samples of healthy human volunteers (n = 32) taken before and after exposure for both the exposure and control sessions. A significant decrease in the granularity, indicative of neutrophil activation, was observed both in the exposure measurements and the exposure minus control measurements. Earlier EMF publications show immune function increase in isolated cells and more effective immune responses in animals with infections. This result, therefore, supports the thesis that the exposure can activate the innate immune system in humans, speed up the innate immune response, and may have potential beneficial effects in infectious disease. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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 typerandomized_trial

Effect directionbenefit

PopulationHealthy human volunteers

Sample size32

ExposureELF · 30 min

Evidence strengthModerateConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

Neutrophil granularity (as an indicator of neutrophil activation)

Limitations

Specific LF-EMF frequency not reported in the abstract
Only one biomarker/outcome (neutrophil granularity) described in the abstract
Short exposure duration (30 min) with immediate pre/post measurements only (no longer-term follow-up described)
Healthy volunteers only; clinical relevance to infectious disease not tested in this study (as described in the abstract)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "randomized_trial",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "ELF",
    "source": null,
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "30 min"
  },
  "population": "Healthy human volunteers",
  "sample_size": 32,
  "outcomes": [
    "Neutrophil granularity (as an indicator of neutrophil activation)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In a randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study, exposure to a nominal 5 μT low-frequency EMF signal for 30 minutes was associated with a significant decrease in neutrophil granularity in blood samples taken before vs after exposure, interpreted as neutrophil activation. A significant decrease was also reported for exposure minus control measurements.",
  "effect_direction": "benefit",
  "limitations": [
    "Specific LF-EMF frequency not reported in the abstract",
    "Only one biomarker/outcome (neutrophil granularity) described in the abstract",
    "Short exposure duration (30 min) with immediate pre/post measurements only (no longer-term follow-up described)",
    "Healthy volunteers only; clinical relevance to infectious disease not tested in this study (as described in the abstract)"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "moderate",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "low-frequency electromagnetic field",
    "LF-EMF",
    "5 μT",
    "randomized",
    "placebo-controlled",
    "crossover",
    "neutrophils",
    "neutrophilic granulocytes",
    "granularity",
    "innate immune system",
    "in vivo"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.2,
      "reason": "Human experimental study of low-frequency EMF exposure potentially relevant to exposure guidelines discussions."
    }
  ]
}

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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: 10.1002/bem.22406
PubMed: 35481557

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