Attributes of non-ionizing radiation of 1800 MHz frequency on plant health and antioxidant content of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum) plants

2022 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 901

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2022

Study typeanimal

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Attributes of non-ionizing radiation of 1800 MHz frequency on plant health and antioxidant content of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum) plants Chandni Upadhyaya, Trushit Upadhyaya, Ishita Patel. Attributes of non-ionizing radiation of 1800 MHz frequency on plant health and antioxidant content of Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum) plants. Journal of Radiation Research and Applied Sciences. 15(1):54-68. 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.jrras.2022.02.001. Abstract The Globe is marching towards the development of the telecommunication field which leads to increment of non-ionizing radiation in the environment which affects all living beings including plants grown nearby to communication base stations. The present research was focused on physiological and biochemical alterations of tomato plants exposed to high-frequency radiation. The overall plant health was analyzed by physiological changes viz., plant height, size of leaves, length to the root system, and rate of germination upon exposure of radiation and shown significant reduction (p < 0.05) compared to control. Consecutively, radiation also negatively affects the photosynthetic pigment content of leaves which has shown significant reduction. Yet another confirmation of stress on exposed plant tissue was reported by obtaining higher H2O2 content within exposed plant leaf than the control. The morphological alterations viz. curling of leaves, discoloration, and size reduction became more prominent with an increase in the exposure time. The significant outcomes denoted according to 95% confidence limit. There was a significant decline in total phenolic content (37.06%), flavonoid content (71.38%), Vitamin C content (72.45%), and DPPH (59.32%) as well as total antioxidant assays (71.89%) which revealed significant deteriorative effects on such waves on secondary metabolites and the antioxidant potential of tomato plants. The lycopene content was continuously increasing up to 73.13% upon radiation of 120 h and such raise was the direct indication of harmful effect on fruit skin and release of lycopene due to softening of the fruit tissue. Thus, the presented findings illustrated the negative effects of such waves on the quality of tomato plants. The limited insight of metabolic pathways involved in plant responses to such non- ionizing radiation makes such investigation worth in agricultural application. Additionally, mobile communication agencies should be informed and installation of base stations for mobile communication towers should be prohibited at agricultural lands. Excerpts The ambient field in the greenhouse was as low as 1.1–1.5 V/m.... With an exposure of continuous wave (CW) electromagnetic field of 8 V/m, the SAR value was found to be 3.16 × 10−2 W kg−1 and 0.15 W kg−1 for leaves and fruits samples respectively.... Conclusion The presented investigation discovered that all measured physiological parameters revealed deterioration with increase in electromagnetic exposure. However, the transient improvement in rate of seed germination and plant growth parameters can be considered as positive effect of short-term (12–24 h) exposure. The prolonged exposure effect on antioxidant content and activity interpreted the harmful effects of such radiation. Although, exposure of 12–24 h gave positive results for phenolic and flavonoid content assays and in the range of 1–10% for both fruit and leaf samples and indicated stimulation of plant defense system. The most significant outcomes in terms of deterioration were observed in the assays from fruit tissues viz. 36.97, 71.38, 72.45% decline in phenolic compounds, flavonoids, vitamin C content respectively. The throughout increase of lycopene in fruits (73.13%) indicated softening of skin and release of lycopene. There was a brief increase in enzymatic antioxidants POD and PPO activity upon 24–48 h of exposure which was followed by a constant decline with an increase in exposure time and revealed weakening of the defense system and plant health. The quality of exposed tomato fruits also deteriorated upon prolonged exposure. As there is constant advancement in electronics and communication and our march towards 5G frequency, the consequences of exposure to such radiation on plants should be investigated thoroughly. sciencedirect.com

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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

PopulationTomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants (leaves and fruits)

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureRF · 1800 MHz · 12–120 h (various exposure times mentioned)

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Tomato plants exposed to 1800 MHz radiation showed significant reductions in multiple physiological parameters (e.g., plant height, leaf size, root length) and photosynthetic pigments versus control, with higher H2O2 and increasing morphological damage with longer exposure. Antioxidant-related measures (phenolics, flavonoids, vitamin C, DPPH, total antioxidant assays) declined substantially with prolonged exposure, while lycopene increased up to 120 h; the conclusion notes transient improvements at short-term exposure (12–24 h) for some measures but deterioration with longer exposure.

Outcomes measured

Plant height
Leaf size
Root length
Germination rate
Photosynthetic pigment content
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content
Leaf morphology (curling, discoloration, size reduction)
Total phenolic content
Flavonoid content
Vitamin C content
DPPH assay
Total antioxidant assays
Lycopene content
Enzymatic antioxidants (POD, PPO activity)

Limitations

Sample size not reported in provided text
Exposure source/setup details not fully specified in provided text (e.g., distance to source, modulation beyond CW)
SAR values reported for leaves and fruits but not summarized across all conditions in provided text

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": null,
    "frequency_mhz": 1800,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "12–120 h (various exposure times mentioned)"
  },
  "population": "Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants (leaves and fruits)",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Plant height",
    "Leaf size",
    "Root length",
    "Germination rate",
    "Photosynthetic pigment content",
    "Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content",
    "Leaf morphology (curling, discoloration, size reduction)",
    "Total phenolic content",
    "Flavonoid content",
    "Vitamin C content",
    "DPPH assay",
    "Total antioxidant assays",
    "Lycopene content",
    "Enzymatic antioxidants (POD, PPO activity)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Tomato plants exposed to 1800 MHz radiation showed significant reductions in multiple physiological parameters (e.g., plant height, leaf size, root length) and photosynthetic pigments versus control, with higher H2O2 and increasing morphological damage with longer exposure. Antioxidant-related measures (phenolics, flavonoids, vitamin C, DPPH, total antioxidant assays) declined substantially with prolonged exposure, while lycopene increased up to 120 h; the conclusion notes transient improvements at short-term exposure (12–24 h) for some measures but deterioration with longer exposure.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Sample size not reported in provided text",
    "Exposure source/setup details not fully specified in provided text (e.g., distance to source, modulation beyond CW)",
    "SAR values reported for leaves and fruits but not summarized across all conditions in provided text"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "non-ionizing radiation",
    "RF-EMF",
    "1800 MHz",
    "tomato",
    "Solanum lycopersicum",
    "plant physiology",
    "antioxidants",
    "phenolics",
    "flavonoids",
    "vitamin C",
    "lycopene",
    "oxidative stress",
    "H2O2",
    "SAR",
    "continuous wave",
    "V/m"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "agriculture-plants",
      "weight": 0.95,
      "reason": "Study examines RF-EMF effects on tomato plant health and antioxidant content."
    },
    {
      "slug": "base-stations",
      "weight": 0.55,
      "reason": "Abstract discusses plants near communication base stations and recommends restricting tower installation near agricultural lands."
    }
  ]
}

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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: 10.1016/j.jrras.2022.02.001
PubMed: Not supplied

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