HarmLow evidencePaper 56

Effects of 4.9 GHz Radiofrequency Field Exposure on Brain Metabolomic and Proteomic

Keywords

#4.9 GHz #radiofrequency #RF exposure #mice #C57BL/6 #brain #serum #metabolomics #proteomics #TMT #glycerophospholipid metabolism #differentially expressed metabolites #differentially expressed proteins #power density 50 W/m^2 #5G

Study snapshot

PublicationBiology (Basel) · 2024

Study typeanimal

Reported directionHarm

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Effects of 4.9 GHz Radiofrequency Field Exposure on Brain Metabolomic and Proteomic Characterization in Mice Wang X, Zhou G, Lin J, Zhang Z, Qin T, Guo L, Wang H, Huang Z, Ding G. Effects of 4.9 GHz Radiofrequency Field Exposure on Brain Metabolomic and Proteomic Characterization in Mice. Biology (Basel). 2024 Oct 10;13(10):806. doi: 10.3390/biology13100806. Abstract Electromagnetic exposure has become increasingly widespread, and its biological effects have received extensive attention. The purpose of this study was to explore changes in the metabolism profile of the brain and serum and to identify differentially expressed proteins in the brain after exposure to the 4.9 GHz radiofrequency (RF) field. C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a Sham group and an RF group, which were sham-exposed and continuously exposed to a 4.9 RF field for 35 d, 1 h/d, at an average power density (PD) of 50 W/m2 . After exposure, untargeted metabolomics and Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) quantitative proteomics were performed. We found 104 and 153 up- and down-regulated differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) in the RF_Brain group and RF_Serum group, and the DEMs were significantly enriched in glycerophospholipid metabolism. Moreover, 10 up-regulated and 51 down-regulated differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were discovered in the RF group. Functional correlation analysis showed that most DEMs and DEPs showed a significant correlation. These results suggested that 4.9 GHz exposure induced disturbance of metabolism in the brain and serum, and caused deregulation of proteins in the brain. Simple Summary The brain, as the central nervous system that controls the body’s sensory, behavior, and mental symptoms, is sensitive to RF exposure, and lots of studies have explored the potential health hazards of RF-EMR with different frequencies to the brain. Our previous study found that 4.9 GHz radiofrequency radiation induced depression-like behavior in mice, but the mechanism of the behavioral changes was unclear. Studies have shown that changes in peripheral energy metabolism might affect brain lipid levels, and thereby cortical excitability, and a deregulated hippocampus proteome might influence the healthy functioning of the brain. Here, we provide evidence that 4.9 GHz RF exposure altered metabolite expression patterns in brain tissue and serum, especially glycerophospholipid metabolism. In addition, 4.9 GHz RF exposure induced an imbalance in the protein profile of brain tissue and may alter gap junction communication. Our results initially revealed the biological effects of 5G communication frequency exposure and provided a possible mechanism for electromagnetic radiation-induced behavioral changes from the perspective of metabolome and proteome. Open access paper: mdpi.com

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 directionharm

PopulationC57BL/6 mice

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureRF · 4900 MHz · 35 d, 1 h/d; continuous exposure during each 1 h session; average power density 50 W/m^2

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

After 4.9 GHz RF exposure (35 d, 1 h/d; average power density 50 W/m^2), the RF-exposed mice showed numerous differentially expressed metabolites in brain and serum, with enrichment in glycerophospholipid metabolism. The RF group also showed differentially expressed proteins in brain (10 up-regulated, 51 down-regulated), and many DEMs and DEPs were significantly correlated.

Outcomes measured

Brain metabolomic profile (untargeted metabolomics)
Serum metabolomic profile (untargeted metabolomics)
Brain proteomic profile (TMT quantitative proteomics)
Differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs)
Differentially expressed proteins (DEPs)
Pathway enrichment (e.g., glycerophospholipid metabolism)
Functional correlation between DEMs and DEPs

Limitations

Sample size not reported in the abstract
Only one exposure level (power density) and one exposure schedule reported
Animal model; generalizability to humans is uncertain
Outcomes are omics-based changes; clinical/functional health implications are not established in the abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "animal",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": null,
    "frequency_mhz": 4900,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "35 d, 1 h/d; continuous exposure during each 1 h session; average power density 50 W/m^2"
  },
  "population": "C57BL/6 mice",
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Brain metabolomic profile (untargeted metabolomics)",
    "Serum metabolomic profile (untargeted metabolomics)",
    "Brain proteomic profile (TMT quantitative proteomics)",
    "Differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs)",
    "Differentially expressed proteins (DEPs)",
    "Pathway enrichment (e.g., glycerophospholipid metabolism)",
    "Functional correlation between DEMs and DEPs"
  ],
  "main_findings": "After 4.9 GHz RF exposure (35 d, 1 h/d; average power density 50 W/m^2), the RF-exposed mice showed numerous differentially expressed metabolites in brain and serum, with enrichment in glycerophospholipid metabolism. The RF group also showed differentially expressed proteins in brain (10 up-regulated, 51 down-regulated), and many DEMs and DEPs were significantly correlated.",
  "effect_direction": "harm",
  "limitations": [
    "Sample size not reported in the abstract",
    "Only one exposure level (power density) and one exposure schedule reported",
    "Animal model; generalizability to humans is uncertain",
    "Outcomes are omics-based changes; clinical/functional health implications are not established in the abstract"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "4.9 GHz",
    "radiofrequency",
    "RF exposure",
    "mice",
    "C57BL/6",
    "brain",
    "serum",
    "metabolomics",
    "proteomics",
    "TMT",
    "glycerophospholipid metabolism",
    "differentially expressed metabolites",
    "differentially expressed proteins",
    "power density 50 W/m^2",
    "5G"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "5g-policy",
      "weight": 0.55,
      "reason": "Study explicitly frames 4.9 GHz as a 5G communication frequency exposure and evaluates biological effects."
    }
  ]
}

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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: 10.3390/biology13100806
PubMed: Not supplied

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