RF Safe

Alteration of adaptive behaviors of progeny after maternal mobile phone exposure

2018 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 2123

In the presence of maternal immune activation (LPS), there was a SAR-dependent reduction of prepulse startle inhibition in adult offspring. Open field activity was reduced at 2.6 W/kg during adolescence. GFAP, IL-1β, emotional memory, and anxiety-related beha…

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2018
Study typeanimal
Reported directionMixed
Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Alteration of adaptive behaviors of progeny after maternal mobile phone exposure Petitdant N, Lecomte A, Robidel F, Gamez, C, Blazy K, Villégier A-S. Alteration of adaptive behaviors of progeny after maternal mobile phone exposure. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 25(11):10894-10903. Apr 2018. Exposure of pregnant women to radiofrequency (RF) devices raises questions on their possible health consequences for their progeny. We examined the hazard threshold of gestational RF on the progeny's glial homeostasis, sensory-motor gating, emotionality, and novelty seeking and tested whether maternal immune activation would increase RF toxicity. Pregnant dams were daily restrained with loop antennas adjoining the abdomen (fetus body specific absorption rates (SAR): 0, 0.7, or 2.6 W/kg) and received three lipopolysaccharide (LPS) intra-peritoneal injections (0 or 80 mu g/kg). Scores in the prepulse startle inhibition, fear conditioning, open field, and elevated plus maze were assessed at adolescence and adulthood. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and interleukines-1 beta (ILs) were quantified. LPS induced a SAR-dependent reduction of the prepulse startle inhibition in adults. Activity in the open field was reduced at 2.6 W/kg at adolescence. GFAP and ILs, emotional memory, and anxiety-related behaviors were not modified. These data support the hypothesis that maternal immune activation increased the developmental RF exposure-induced long-term neurobiological impairments. These data support the fact that fetuses who receive combined environmental exposures with RF need special attention for protection. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov Excerpts GD 1 dams were randomly assigned to one RF-EMF emission power group (0 (sham), 1 or 4 W) or to the cage control group (no daily restraint). Half of each RF-EMF group was randomly assigned to receive vehicle (saline) or LPS intraperitoneal injections (80 μg/ml/kg, E. coli, serotype 055:B5, phenol extraction Sigma-Aldrich, MO) at GD 15, 17 and 19 (n = 6-9/group). At birth, the number of pups per litter was recorded. At post-natal day (PND) 3, litters were adjusted to four males by reduction or adoption. According to the finite difference time domain calculations, numerical dosimetry indicated 20 GD-averaged fetus whole body SAR of 0.7 +/− 1.5 W/kg for 1 W and 2,6 +/− 6 W/kg for 4 W emitting power. To conclude, our study is the first to highlight gestational inflammation-induced vulnerability towards RF-EMF exposure on the ability to filtrate sensory information. Cerebral impairments were SAR-dependent supporting the causal relationship between EMF-RF exposure and deficits. RF-EMF levels tested in this study may surround the possible toxic threshold for gestational RF-EMF. These data with those of other studies support the fact that special attention should be devoted to the protection of embryos and fetuses that can be co-exposed to environmental factors and EMFs at diverse frequencies and intensities.

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
PopulationPregnant dams and their progeny (assessed at adolescence and adulthood)
Sample sizeNot supplied
ExposureRF · 2.6 W/kg · gestation; daily restraint with loop antennas adjoining the abdomen
Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

In the presence of maternal immune activation (LPS), there was a SAR-dependent reduction of prepulse startle inhibition in adult offspring. Open field activity was reduced at 2.6 W/kg during adolescence. GFAP, IL-1β, emotional memory, and anxiety-related behaviors were reported as not modified.

Outcomes measured

  • Prepulse startle inhibition (sensory-motor gating)
  • Fear conditioning (emotional memory)
  • Open field activity
  • Elevated plus maze (anxiety-related behavior)
  • Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)
  • Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β)

Limitations

  • RF frequency not reported in the provided abstract/metadata
  • Sample size not fully specified in the abstract (only n=6–9/group mentioned in excerpts)
  • Animal model with combined exposure (RF plus restraint and LPS) may limit generalizability to typical human exposures
View raw extracted JSON
{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "mobile phone",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": 2.6,
    "duration": "gestation; daily restraint with loop antennas adjoining the abdomen"
  },
  "population": "Pregnant dams and their progeny (assessed at adolescence and adulthood)",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Prepulse startle inhibition (sensory-motor gating)",
    "Fear conditioning (emotional memory)",
    "Open field activity",
    "Elevated plus maze (anxiety-related behavior)",
    "Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)",
    "Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "In the presence of maternal immune activation (LPS), there was a SAR-dependent reduction of prepulse startle inhibition in adult offspring. Open field activity was reduced at 2.6 W/kg during adolescence. GFAP, IL-1β, emotional memory, and anxiety-related behaviors were reported as not modified.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [
    "RF frequency not reported in the provided abstract/metadata",
    "Sample size not fully specified in the abstract (only n=6–9/group mentioned in excerpts)",
    "Animal model with combined exposure (RF plus restraint and LPS) may limit generalizability to typical human exposures"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "radiofrequency",
    "RF-EMF",
    "gestational exposure",
    "maternal immune activation",
    "lipopolysaccharide",
    "SAR",
    "offspring behavior",
    "prepulse inhibition",
    "open field",
    "GFAP",
    "interleukin-1 beta"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "mobile-phones",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Gestational RF exposure described as maternal mobile phone exposure with fetus SAR values."
    },
    {
      "slug": "pregnancy-and-development",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Focus on gestational exposure and long-term neurobehavioral outcomes in offspring."
    },
    {
      "slug": "animal-studies",
      "weight": 0.8,
      "reason": "Pregnant dams and offspring behavioral/biomarker outcomes."
    }
  ]
}
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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: Not supplied
PubMed: Not supplied

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