Evaluation of Wi-Fi Radiation Effects on Antibiotic Susceptibility, Metabolic Activity and Biofilm Formation by Escherichia Coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus Aureus and Staphylococcus Epidermis

2019 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 1642

Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz) exposure altered motility and antibiotic susceptibility in Escherichia coli O157H7, while no effect on antibiotic susceptibility was reported for Staphylococcus aureus or Staphylococcus epidermidis. Exposed cells showed increased metabolic act…

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2019

Study typecase_control

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Evaluation of Wi-Fi Radiation Effects on Antibiotic Susceptibility, Metabolic Activity and Biofilm Formation by Escherichia Coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus Aureus and Staphylococcus Epidermis Said-Salman IH, Jebali FA, Yusef HH, Mustafa ME. Evaluation of Wi-Fi Radiation Effects on Antibiotic Susceptibility, Metabolic Activity and Biofilm Formation by Escherichia Coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus Aureus and Staphylococcus Epidermis. J Biomed Phys Eng. 2019 Oct 1;9(5):579-586. doi: 10.31661/jbpe.v0i0.1106. Abstract Background: The radiation emitted from electromagnetic fields (EMF) can cause biological effects on prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, including non-thermal effects. Objective: The present study evaluated the non-thermal effects of wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) operating at 2.4 GHz part of non-ionizing EMF on different pathogenic bacterial strains (Escherichia coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus aureus, and Staphylococcus epidermis). Antibiotic resistance, motility, metabolic activity and biofilm formation were examined. Material and Methods:In this case-control, a Wi-Fi router was used as a source of microwaves and also bacterial cells were exposed to Wi-Fi radiation continuously for 24 and 48 hours. The antibiotic susceptibility was carried out using a disc diffusion method on Müller Hinton agar plates. Motility of Escherichia coli 0157H7 was conducted on motility agar plates. Cell metabolic activity and biofilm formation were performed using 3-(4, 5- Dimethylthiazol-2yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and crystal violet quantification, respectively. Results: The exposure to Wi-Fi radiation altered motility and antibiotic susceptibility of Escherichia coli 0157H7. However, there was no effect Wi-Fi radiation on antibiotic susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermis. On the other hand, the exposed cells, as compared to the unexposed control, showed an increased metabolic activity and biofilm formation ability in Escherichia coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermis. Conclusion: These results proposed that Wi-Fi exposure acted on bacteria in stressful manner by increasing antibiotic resistance and motility of Escherichia coli 0157H7, as well as enhancing biofilm formation by Escherichia coli 0157H7, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermis. The findings may have implications for the management of serious diseases caused by these infectious bacteria. Open access paper: 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 typecase_control

Effect directionmixed

PopulationPathogenic bacterial strains (Escherichia coli O157H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis)

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureRF · 2400 MHz · continuous exposure for 24 and 48 hours

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

Antibiotic susceptibility (disc diffusion)
Motility (E. coli O157H7)
Metabolic activity (MTT assay)
Biofilm formation (crystal violet quantification)

Limitations

Sample size not reported in the provided abstract/metadata
Exposure intensity/dosimetry (e.g., power density, SAR) not reported in the provided abstract/metadata
Study described as case-control but conducted in vitro on bacterial cultures; design details limited in abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "case_control",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "wi-fi router",
    "frequency_mhz": 2400,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "continuous exposure for 24 and 48 hours"
  },
  "population": "Pathogenic bacterial strains (Escherichia coli O157H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis)",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Antibiotic susceptibility (disc diffusion)",
    "Motility (E. coli O157H7)",
    "Metabolic activity (MTT assay)",
    "Biofilm formation (crystal violet quantification)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz) exposure altered motility and antibiotic susceptibility in Escherichia coli O157H7, while no effect on antibiotic susceptibility was reported for Staphylococcus aureus or Staphylococcus epidermidis. Exposed cells showed increased metabolic activity and increased biofilm formation in all three bacterial strains compared with unexposed controls.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "Sample size not reported in the provided abstract/metadata",
    "Exposure intensity/dosimetry (e.g., power density, SAR) not reported in the provided abstract/metadata",
    "Study described as case-control but conducted in vitro on bacterial cultures; design details limited in abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "Wi-Fi",
    "2.4 GHz",
    "RF-EMF",
    "non-thermal effects",
    "Escherichia coli O157H7",
    "Staphylococcus aureus",
    "Staphylococcus epidermidis",
    "antibiotic susceptibility",
    "antibiotic resistance",
    "motility",
    "metabolic activity",
    "biofilm formation",
    "MTT assay",
    "crystal violet"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "school-wi-fi",
      "weight": 0.6,
      "reason": "Study evaluates biological effects of Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz) exposure."
    }
  ]
}

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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: 10.31661/jbpe.v0i0.1106
PubMed: Not supplied

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