Alterations of thymic morphology and antioxidant biomarkers in male rats following exposure to continuous 900 MHz EMF during adolescence

2017 · Harm · Low evidence

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HarmLow evidencePaper 2240

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2017

Study typeanimal

Reported directionHarm

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Alterations of thymic morphology and antioxidant biomarkers in male rats following exposure to continuous 900 MHz EMF during adolescence Kulaber A, Kerimoğlu G, Ersöz Ş, Çolakoğlu S, Odacı E. Alterations of thymic morphology and antioxidant biomarkers in 60-day-old male rats following exposure to a continuous 900 MHz electromagnetic field during adolescence. Biotech Histochem. 2017 Jun 9:1-7. doi: 10.1080/10520295.2017.1312525. Abstract We investigated changes in thymic tissue of male rats exposed to a 900 megahertz (MHz) electromagnetic field (EMF) on postnatal days 22-59. Three groups of six 21-day-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were allocated as: control (CG), sham (SG) and EMF (EMFG) groups. No procedure was performed on the CG rats. SG rats were placed in a Plexiglas cage for 1 h every day between postnatal days 22 and 59 without exposure to EMF. EMFG rats were placed in the same cage for the same periods as the SG rats and were exposed to 900 MHz EMF. Rats were sacrificed on postnatal day 60. Sections of thymus were stained for histological assessment. Oxidant/antioxidant parameters were investigated biochemically. Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in EMFG increased compared to the other groups. Extravascular erythrocytes were observed in the medullary/corticomedullary regions in EMFG sections. We found that 900 MHz EMF applied for 1 h/day on postnatal days 22-59 can increase tissue MDA and histopathological changes in male rat thymic tissue. 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 typeanimal

Effect directionharm

Population21-day-old male Sprague-Dawley rats (exposed during adolescence; assessed at 60 days old)

Sample size18

ExposureRF · 900 MHz · 1 h/day on postnatal days 22–59 (sacrificed day 60)

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Compared with control and sham groups, the EMF-exposed group had increased thymic malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Histology showed extravascular erythrocytes in medullary/corticomedullary regions in the EMF-exposed group, and the authors conclude 900 MHz EMF exposure (1 h/day, postnatal days 22–59) can increase tissue MDA and cause histopathological changes in male rat thymus.

Outcomes measured

Thymic histopathology (histological assessment)
Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels
Oxidant/antioxidant parameters (biochemical)

Limitations

Small group sizes (three groups of six rats)
Exposure metric details (e.g., SAR/power density) not reported in the abstract
Only male rats studied
Short-term assessment ending at postnatal day 60

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": null,
    "frequency_mhz": 900,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "1 h/day on postnatal days 22–59 (sacrificed day 60)"
  },
  "population": "21-day-old male Sprague-Dawley rats (exposed during adolescence; assessed at 60 days old)",
  "sample_size": 18,
  "outcomes": [
    "Thymic histopathology (histological assessment)",
    "Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels",
    "Oxidant/antioxidant parameters (biochemical)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Compared with control and sham groups, the EMF-exposed group had increased thymic malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Histology showed extravascular erythrocytes in medullary/corticomedullary regions in the EMF-exposed group, and the authors conclude 900 MHz EMF exposure (1 h/day, postnatal days 22–59) can increase tissue MDA and cause histopathological changes in male rat thymus.",
  "effect_direction": "harm",
  "limitations": [
    "Small group sizes (three groups of six rats)",
    "Exposure metric details (e.g., SAR/power density) not reported in the abstract",
    "Only male rats studied",
    "Short-term assessment ending at postnatal day 60"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "900 MHz",
    "RF-EMF",
    "adolescence",
    "Sprague-Dawley rat",
    "thymus",
    "histopathology",
    "oxidative stress",
    "malondialdehyde",
    "MDA",
    "sham control"
  ],
  "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: 10.1080/10520295.2017.1312525
PubMed: Not supplied

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