Effects of folic acid on rat kidney exposed to 900 MHz EMR

2017 · Harm · Low evidence

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HarmLow evidencePaper 2386

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2017

Study typeanimal

Reported directionHarm

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Effects of folic acid on rat kidney exposed to 900 MHz EMR Ömür Gülsüm Deniz, Elfide Gizem Kıvrak, Arife Ahsen Kaplan, Berrin Zuhal Altunkaynak. Effects of folic acid on rat kidney exposed to 900 MHz electromagnetic radiation. J Microsc Ultrastruct. Oct-Dec 2017;5(4):198-205. doi: 10.1016/j.jmau.2017.06.001. Highlights • The kidneys of adult male rats were investigated after exposure to 900-MHz electromagnetic radiation. • Folic acid exhibited protective effects in the kidney against the side-effects of electromagnetic radiation exposure. • Changes in volume and numbers of glomeruli in the kidney were analyzed using unbiased stereological methods. Abstract Because of increased use of cell phones, the purpose of this study was to investigation of the oxidative damage caused by electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted by cell phones and histological and morphometrical determination of the possible protective role of folic acid (FA) in preventing the detrimental effects of EMR on the kidney. Twenty-four adult male Wistar albino rats were divided into control (Cont), EMR, EMR + FA and FA groups, each containing six rats. The EMR and EMR + FA groups were exposed to EMR for 60 min a day over a period of 21 days, while no EMR exposure was applied to the Cont and FA groups. The source of the EMR was an EMR device which emits a digital signal producing 900-MHz frequency radiation. The generator connected to a one-monopole antenna was used in this study and the rats were placed in the plexiglass restrainer at an equal distance from the monopole antenna. Following the experimental period, and after tissue processing, a physical disector-Cavalieri method combination was applied to the sections. The mean volume of the cortex, medulla, proximal and distal tubules increased significantly in the EMR groups compared to the Cont group (p < 0.01). Contrarily, the total number of glomeruli in the EMR group decreased compared to the Cont group (p < 0.01). The protective effects of FA was observed in the kidney (p < 0.05). In conclusion, the 900-MHz EMR leads to kidney damage. FA may exhibit a protective effect against the adverse effects of EMR exposure in terms of the total number of glomeruli. 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 directionharm

PopulationAdult male Wistar albino rats

Sample size24

ExposureRF · 900 MHz · 60 min/day for 21 days

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Twenty-four adult male rats were assigned to control, EMR, EMR+folic acid, and folic acid-only groups (n=6 each). Compared with control, the EMR-exposed group showed significantly increased mean volumes of cortex, medulla, and proximal/distal tubules (p<0.01) and a decreased total number of glomeruli (p<0.01); folic acid was reported to have protective effects in the kidney (p<0.05).

Outcomes measured

Kidney oxidative damage (as stated in aim)
Kidney histological and morphometrical changes
Mean volume of kidney cortex and medulla
Mean volume of proximal and distal tubules
Total number of glomeruli
Protective effect of folic acid against EMR-related kidney changes

Limitations

Specific oxidative stress biomarkers/results are not reported in the abstract
Specific exposure dosimetry (e.g., SAR) is not provided in the abstract
Small group sizes (n=6 per group)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "mobile phone",
    "frequency_mhz": 900,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "60 min/day for 21 days"
  },
  "population": "Adult male Wistar albino rats",
  "sample_size": 24,
  "outcomes": [
    "Kidney oxidative damage (as stated in aim)",
    "Kidney histological and morphometrical changes",
    "Mean volume of kidney cortex and medulla",
    "Mean volume of proximal and distal tubules",
    "Total number of glomeruli",
    "Protective effect of folic acid against EMR-related kidney changes"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Twenty-four adult male rats were assigned to control, EMR, EMR+folic acid, and folic acid-only groups (n=6 each). Compared with control, the EMR-exposed group showed significantly increased mean volumes of cortex, medulla, and proximal/distal tubules (p<0.01) and a decreased total number of glomeruli (p<0.01); folic acid was reported to have protective effects in the kidney (p<0.05).",
  "effect_direction": "harm",
  "limitations": [
    "Specific oxidative stress biomarkers/results are not reported in the abstract",
    "Specific exposure dosimetry (e.g., SAR) is not provided in the abstract",
    "Small group sizes (n=6 per group)"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "900 MHz",
    "electromagnetic radiation",
    "RF-EMR",
    "cell phone",
    "kidney",
    "glomeruli",
    "stereology",
    "Cavalieri method",
    "physical disector",
    "folic acid",
    "rat"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "mobile-phones-rf",
      "weight": 0.86,
      "reason": "Exposure described as 900-MHz EMR emitted by cell phones / digital signal source."
    }
  ]
}

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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.jmau.2017.06.001
PubMed: Not supplied

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