Development and evaluation of the electromagnetic hypersensitivity questionnaire

Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) syndrome is usually defined as a condition where an individual experiences adverse health effects that he or she believes is due to exposure to objects that emit electromagnetic fields. The aim of this study was to develop a questionnaire that would identify the key symptoms associated with EHS and determine how often these symptoms occur in the general population of the United Kingdom. In the pilot study, an EHS questionnaire was developed and tested. In Study 1 the EHS questionnaire was revised and sent to a randomly selected sample of 20,000 people. Principal components analysis of the symptoms resulted in eight subscales: neurovegetative, skin, auditory, headache, cardiorespiratory, cold related, locomotor, and allergy related symptoms. Study 2 established the validity of the questionnaire in that EHS individuals showed a higher severity of symptoms on all subscales compared to the control group. The two key results of this study were the development of a scale that provides an index of the type and intensity of symptoms commonly experienced by people believing themselves to be EHS and a screening tool that researchers can use to pre-select the most sensitive individuals to take part in their research.     

Cognitive and physiological responses in humans exposed to a TETRA base station signal in relation to perceived electromagnetic hypersensitivity

Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) technology (“Airwave”) has led to public concern because of its potential interference with electrical activity in the brain. The present study is the first to examine whether acute exposure to a TETRA base station signal has an impact on cognitive functioning and physiological responses. Participants were exposed to a 420 MHz TETRA signal at a power flux density of 10 mW/m² as well as sham (no signal) under double‐blind conditions. Fifty‐one people who reported a perceived sensitivity to electromagnetic fields as well as 132 controls participated in a double‐blind provocation study. Forty‐eight sensitive and 132 control participants completed all three sessions. Measures of short‐term memory, working memory, and attention were administered while physiological responses (blood volume pulse, heart rate, skin conductance) were monitored. After applying exclusion criteria based on task performance for each aforementioned cognitive measure, data were analyzed for 36, 43, and 48 sensitive participants for these respective tasks and, likewise, 107,125, and 129 controls. We observed no differences in cognitive performance between sham and TETRA exposure in either group; physiological response also did not differ between the exposure conditions. These findings are similar to previous double‐blind studies with other mobile phone signals (900–2100 MHz), which could not establish any clear evidence that mobile phone signals affect health or cognitive function. Bioelectromagnetics 33:23–39, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Prevalence of subjective poor health symptoms associated with exposure to electromagnetic fields among university students

The number of people complaining about different symptoms that may be associated with exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) has increased rapidly during past years. Students use both mobile phones and video display terminals frequently. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of mobile phone use and EMF health hazards. Basic demographic data and self-reported symptoms were sought using a questionnaire administered to all apparently healthy students at Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences (RUMS) and Vali-e-Asr University (VAU). Questions about some major confounding factors such as age, gender, amount of video display terminal work were also included. Exact Fischer Test was used for data analysis. Among self-reported symptoms, headache (53.5%), fatigue (35.6%), difficulties in concentration (32.5%), vertigo/dizziness (30.4%), attention disorders (28.8%), nervousness (28.1%), palpitation (14.7%), low back pain (14.3%), myalgia (12.4%), and tinnitus (9.9%) were the main self-reported symptoms. No significant differences in the prevalence of these symptoms were found between CRT users and those who did not use CRTs. A significant association was found between cordless phone use and difficulties in concentration (P < .05) or attention disorders (P < .05). However, after correction of the gender role, these differences were not significant. No association was found between mobile phone use and the above-mentioned symptoms. No significantly higher prevalence of self-reported symptoms was found in individuals who had used mobile phones, video display terminals or cordless phones more frequently than others. Mass-media's lack of interest in the possible hazards of exposure to EMF in developing countries can explain the difference observed between the results of this study and those of other researchers in some developed countries who have shown an association between EMF exposure and the prevalence of self-reported subjective symptoms. This finding can confirm the results obtained in provocative studies which indicated the role of psychological factors in electromagnetic hypersensitivity. More research is needed to clarify whether daily environmental EMF may cause health problems.     

Short‐term exposure to mobile phone base station signals does not affect cognitive functioning or physiological measures in individuals who report sensitivity to electromagnetic fields and controls

Individuals who report sensitivity to electromagnetic fields often report cognitive impairments that they believe are due to exposure to mobile phone technology. Previous research in this area has revealed mixed results, however, with the majority of research only testing control individuals. Two studies using control and self‐reported sensitive participants found inconsistent effects of mobile phone base stations on cognitive functioning. The aim of the present study was to clarify whether short‐term (50 min) exposure at 10 mW/m² to typical Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) base station signals affects attention, memory, and physiological endpoints in sensitive and control participants. Data from 44 sensitive and 44 matched‐control participants who performed the digit symbol substitution task (DSST), digit span task (DS), and a mental arithmetic task (MA), while being exposed to GSM, UMTS, and sham signals under double‐blind conditions were analyzed. Overall, cognitive functioning was not affected by short‐term exposure to either GSM or UMTS signals in the current study. Nor did exposure affect the physiological measurements of blood volume pulse (BVP), heart rate (HR), and skin conductance (SC) that were taken while participants performed the cognitive tasks. Bioelectromagnetics 30:556–563, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Co-Designed Exposure Protocol in the Study of Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance Attributed to Electromagnetic Fields

The hypothesis of an electromagnetic origin of idiopathic environmental intolerance (IEI) attributed to electromagnetic fields (EMF) has been widely investigated by provocation studies, which consist of deliberately exposing people with IEI-EMF in laboratory settings to particular EMF to observe volunteers’ reactions. In the majority of these studies, reactions have been found to be independent of exposure. However, most of these studies suffer from design and methodological limitations that might bias their findings or reduce their precision. As provocation studies are best suited for isolating the effects of EMF, innovative protocols should be applied. In the ExpoComm project (PNREST Anses, EST/2017/2 RF/19), several innovations have been introduced: the involvement of people with IEI-EMF in the development of the protocol, the attenuation of the anxiogenic nature of the tests, the individualization of the protocol, the validation of the neutral or normal reactivity state before the test, and the use of a cocktail of real, rather than artificially generated, sources. The objective of involving people with IEI-EMF was to increase the relevance and acceptability of the protocol, while respecting technical constraints and scientific quality requirements. This paper describes the protocol resulting from the collaborative process. Bioelectromagnetics. 2020;41:425–437. © 2020 Bioelectromagnetics Society.     

Molecular change signal-to-noise criteria for interpreting experiments involving exposure of biological systems to weakly interacting electromagnetic fields

We describe an approach to aiding the design and interpretation of experiments involving biological effects of weakly interacting electromagnetic fields that range from steady (dc) to microwave frequencies. We propose that if known biophysical mechanisms cannot account for an inferred, underlying molecular change signal-to-noise ratio, (S/N)gen, of a observed result, then there are two interpretation choices: (1) there is an unknown biophysical mechanism with stronger coupling between the field exposure and the ongoing biochemical process, or (2) the experiment is responding to something other than the field exposure. Our approach is based on classical detection theory, the recognition that weakly interacting fields cannot break chemical bonds, and the consequence that such fields can only alter rates of ongoing, metabolically driven biochemical reactions, and transport processes. The approach includes both fundamental chemical noise (molecular shot noise) and other sources of competing chemical change, to be compared quantitatively to the field induced change for the basic case that the field alters a single step in a biochemical network. Consistent with pharmacology and toxicology, we estimate the molecular dose (mass associated with field induced molecular change per mass tissue) resulting from illustrative low frequency field exposures for the biophysical mechanism of voltage gated channels. For perspective, we then consider electric field-mediated delivery of small molecules across human skin and into individual cells. Specifically, we consider the examples of iontophoretic and electroporative delivery of fentanyl through skin and electroporative delivery of bleomycin into individual cells. The total delivered amount corresponds to a molecular change signal and the delivery variability corresponds to generalized chemical noise. Viewed broadly, biological effects due to nonionizing fields may include animal navigation, medical applications, and environmental hazards. Understanding necessary conditions for such effects can be based on a unified approach: quantitative comparison of the estimated chemical change due to a particular electromagnetic field exposure to that due to competing influences, with both estimates based on a biophysical mechanism model within the context of a model of a biological system.     

The relationship between flash evoked potentials and evoked amplitude modulation patterns of an applied UHF electromagnetic field in the rat

Pilot studies demonstrate evidence that the electrophysiological processes associated with flash stimulation of the central nervous system (CNS) of rats, as seen in the recordings of visual-evoked potentials, may also be detectable using an ultrahigh frequency electromagnetic field (UHFEMF). Patterns of amplitude modulation of an applied UHFEMF, when recorded and averaged, show strong correlations with simultaneously recorded evoked potentials. The data support the hypothesis that the UHFEMF amplitude is altered in a dynamic fashion by the tissue's electrophysiological processes that are involved with the generation of CNS electric fields.     

Effects of 50 Hz pulsed electromagnetic fields on the growth and cell cycle arrest of mesenchymal stem cells: an in vitro study

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are capable of self-renew and multipotent differatiation which allows them to be sensitive to microenvironment is altered. Pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMF) can affect cellular physiology of some types of cells. This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of PEMF on the growth and cell cycle arrest of MSCs expanded in vitro. To achieve this, cultured of normal rat MSCs, the treatment groups were respectively irradiated by 50 Hz PEMF at 10 mT of flux densities for 3 or 6 h. The effects of PEMF on cell proliferation, cell cycle arrest, and cell surface antigen phenotype were investigated. Our results showed that exposed MSCs had a significant proliferative capacity (P < 0.05) but the effect of PEMF for 3 and 6 h on cell growth was not different (P>0.05) at an earlier phase after PEMF treatment. Exposure to PEMF had a significant increase the percentage of MSCs in G1 phase compare with the control group, with a higher percentage of cells in G1 phase exposed for 6 h then that for 3 h. At the 16th hour after treatment, PEMF had no significant effect on cell proliferation and cell cycle (P>0.05). These results suggested that PEMF enhanced MSCs proliferation with time-independent and increased the percentage of cells at the G1 phase of the cell cycle in a time-dependent manner, and the effect of PEMF on the cell proliferation and cell cycle arrest of MSCs was temporal after PEMF treatment.     

Effects of an extremely low frequency electromagnetic field on the cell division rate and plasma membrane of Paramecium tetraurelia

The eukaryotic protozoan, Paramecium, was examined as a model for effects of pulsated electromagnetic fields (PEMF) on cells. A 72-Hz PEMF similar to fields employed clinically increased cell division rates in Paramecium by 8.5%. Two calcium transport mutants of these organisms showed differential responses to the same field. Verapamil, a calcium channel blocker, abolished any effect of PEMFs on cell division rates. A fluorescent probe that is thought to sense changes in membrane potential also manifested an altered response in the PEMF-exposed cells whereas a fluorescent lipid bilayer fluidity probe produced evidence of decreased membrane fluidity in the exposed cells. An effect of PEMFs on ion transport mediated by either a direct or indirect effect on the cell membrane is suggested by these studies.     

In vitro effects of low frequency electromagnetic fields on osteoblast proliferation and maturation in an inflammatory environment

An in vitro model was set up to investigate the effects of low frequency pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMF) and its induced electric fields on osteoblast cells under inflammatory conditions. Osteoblasts (7F2) were seeded on top of chitosan scaffolds and co-cultured with macrophage cells (RAW 264.7) growing on the bottom of culture wells, stimulated by lipopolysaccharide to release reactive oxygen species including nitric oxide (NO). The co-culture was exposed to PEMF (magnitude of the magnetic field = 1.5 mT; induced electric voltage = 2.5 mV; frequency = 75 Hz; pulse duration = 1.3 ms) for 9 h. The osteoblasts were examined for their proliferation, viability, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and genetic expressions of type I collagen (COL I) and osteocalcin (OC), immediately and 7 days after PEMF exposure (days 0 and 7). Macrophage cell viability and NO concentration in the medium were monitored before and after PEMF exposure. The PEMF-exposed co-culture released a significantly higher amount of NO (65 μM) compared to control (17 μM) on day 7. Despite the high level of NO in the medium that was reported to be cytotoxic, PEMF-exposed osteoblasts had enhanced cell proliferation (23%), viability (36%), and COL I mRNA expression (3.4-fold) compared to the controls. The osteoblasts subjected to the PEMF had 41% less ALP activity than the control, which was associated with the active cell proliferation and COL I expression. The expression of OC mRNA was not seen in either the PEMF or control group, indicating cells had not entered the mineralization stage by day 7.     

An evaluation of exposure metrics in an epidemiologic study on radio and television broadcast transmitters and the risk of childhood leukemia

Electric field strength values calculated by wave propagation modeling were applied as an exposure metric in a case–control study conducted in Germany to investigate a possible association between radio frequency electromagnetic fields (RF‐EMF) emitted from television and radio broadcast transmitters and the risk of childhood leukemia. To validate this approach it was examined at 850 measurement sites whether calculated RF‐EMF are an improvement to an exposure proxy based on distance from the place of residence to a transmitter. Further, the agreement between measured and calculated RF‐EMF was explored. For dichotomization at the 90% quantiles of the exposure distributions it was found that distance agreed less with measured RF‐EMF (Kappa coefficient: 0.55) than did calculated RF‐EMF (Kappa coefficient: 0.74). Distance was a good exposure proxy for a single transmitter only which uses the frequency bands of amplitude modulated radio, whereas it appeared to be of limited informative value in studies involving several transmitters, particularly if these are operating in different frequency bands. The analysis of the agreement between calculated RF‐EMF and measured RF‐EMF showed a sensitivity of 76.6% and a specificity of 97.4%, leading to an exposure misclassification that still allows one to detect a true odds ratio as low as 1.4 with a statistical power of >80% at a two‐sided significance level of 5% in a study with 2,000 cases and 6,000 controls. Thus, calculated RF‐EMF is confirmed to be an appropriate exposure metric in large‐scale epidemiological studies on broadcast transmitters. Bioelectromagnetics 30:81–91, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

A model for radiofrequency electromagnetic field predictions at outdoor and indoor locations in the context of epidemiological research

We present a geospatial model to predict the radiofrequency electromagnetic field from fixed site transmitters for use in epidemiological exposure assessment. The proposed model extends an existing model toward the prediction of indoor exposure, that is, at the homes of potential study participants. The model is based on accurate operation parameters of all stationary transmitters of mobile communication base stations, and radio broadcast and television transmitters for an extended urban and suburban region in the Basel area (Switzerland). The model was evaluated by calculating Spearman rank correlations and weighted Cohen's kappa (κ) statistics between the model predictions and measurements obtained at street level, in the homes of volunteers, and in front of the windows of these homes. The correlation coefficients of the numerical predictions with street level measurements were 0.64, with indoor measurements 0.66, and with window measurements 0.67. The kappa coefficients were 0.48 (95%‐confidence interval: 0.35–0.61) for street level measurements, 0.44 (95%‐CI: 0.32–0.57) for indoor measurements, and 0.53 (95%‐CI: 0.42–0.65) for window measurements. Although the modeling of shielding effects by walls and roofs requires considerable simplifications of a complex environment, we found a comparable accuracy of the model for indoor and outdoor points. Bioelectromagnetics 31:226–236, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Electromagnetic and thermal characterization of an UHF-applicator for concurrent irradiation and high resolution non-perturbing optical microscopy of cells

To permit trans-illuminated, high-resolution optical microscopy during unperturbed ultrahigh frequency (UHF) irradiation, a novel new class of applicator has been designed based upon a shielded-pair transmission line. As constructed and tested with water-immersion optics and air cooling, the applicator works most robustly over 700-1100 MHz and permits SARs at the cell layer as high as 50 W/kg before the steady state temperature rise at the cell-layer exceeds 0.5 K.     

Development and testing of an Index of Stream Condition for waterway management in Australia

1. An Index of Stream Condition (ISC) has been developed to assist broad scale management of waterways by providing an integrated measure of their environmental condition. 2. The ISC provides scores for five components of stream condition: (i) hydrology (based on change in volume and seasonality of flow from natural conditions); (ii) physical form (based on bank stability, bed erosion or aggradation, influence of artificial barriers, and abundance and origin of coarse woody debris); (iii) streamside zone (based on types of plants; spatial extent, width, and intactness of riparian vegetation; regeneration of overstorey species, and condition of wetlands and billabongs); (iv) water quality (based on an assessment of phosphorus, turbidity, electrical conductivity and pH); and (v) aquatic life (based on number of families of macroinvertebrates). 3. The ISC is intended for use by managers at state and regional levels and can be used to report on stream condition, assist with priority setting, judge the long-term effectiveness of rehabilitation programs and assist with adaptive management. The best available scientific information was used by a multidisciplinary group of scientists and managers to create a stream assessment procedure that can be used routinely by people with limited scientific training. 4. ISC development included trials in four catchments in Victoria, Australia. Over 80 stream reaches were assessed and the results were used to refine the ISC to improve the ease of measurement and ensure that outcomes met the expectations of users. The ISC is now available to be used more widely for reporting on stream condition.     

Development of a software tool and criteria evaluation for efficient design of small interfering RNA

RNA interference can be used as a tool for gene silencing mediated by small interfering RNAs (siRNA). The critical step in effective and specific RNAi processing is the selection of suitable constructs. Major design criteria, i.e., Reynolds’s design rules, thermodynamic stability, internal repeats, immunostimulatory motifs were emphasized and implemented in the siRNA design tool. The tool provides thermodynamic stability score, GC content and a total score based on other design criteria in the output. The viability of the tool was established with different datasets. In general, the siRNA constructs produced by the tool had better thermodynamic score and positional properties. Comparable thermodynamic scores and better total scores were observed with the existing tools. Moreover, the results generated had comparable off-target silencing effect. Criteria evaluations with additional criteria were achieved in WEKA.     

PLA2R-IgG间接荧光定量免疫层析分析的构建与应用

目的 血清抗磷脂酶A2受体抗体IgG (PLA2R-IgG)水平是诊断和治疗特发性膜性肾病（IMN）的重要依据,而目前国内外常规检测手段主要是酶免法。为提升检测的便捷性,同时满足灵敏、宽量程分析需求,本研究构建了一种新的PLA2R-IgG检测技术。方法 采用包裹铕元素的微球示踪,对反应步骤进行选择,对微球制备液的p H、微球-抗体反应比例和反应时间优化,本文基于间接法构建了PLA2R-IgG的荧光定量免疫层析检测方法,并进行了初步临床评价。结果 本方法的灵敏度达0.7 RU/ml,标准曲线方程为y=0.771x-1.437,相关系数0.995,线性测量范围为0.7～1 500 RU/ml,回收率为86.27%～98.98%,平均批内变异系数为8.13%,交叉反应率均小于0.1%,试剂37℃储存10 d稳定。本方法与市售酶免试剂盒相关性为0.953,阴阳性判断一致,对IMN的检出率为76.9%。结论 采用两步法反应的PLA2R-IgG间接荧光定量免疫层析分析,快速、灵敏、准确,具有临床实用性。     

Development of a picture‐scale‐questionnaire to assess liking for fatty,salty, sweet,and umami seasonings compared to a sensory evaluation for Japanese consumers

PrefQuest is a web‐based questionnaire that measures the liking for sweet, fatty‐sweet, salty, and fatty‐salty sensations using combinations of images of French food items. We adapted the original PrefQuest questionnaire for Japanese respondents (J‐PrefQuest). J‐PrefQuest comprises 17 Japanese food items categorized into four sensations: fatty, salty, sweet, and umami. Participants responded by indicating their preferred level of seasoning for each food item on a 6‐point scale. Segmentation of 161 respondents identified groups who preferred: (a) high amount of umami seasonings; (b) low amount of umami seasonings; (c) high amount of fatty and low amount of salty seasonings. To validate the questionnaire, 70 female university students were recruited for a sensory evaluation of five levels of seasoning used for six food items on a 9‐point hedonic scale before completing the questionnaire. The validity of J‐PrefQuest questionnaire was then analyzed by comparing the two results.

Practical applications

Measuring personal preference or “liking” for the taste of food items is important as such information may contribute to the prevention of various diseases and improve the quality of life of consumers. We developed a simple questionnaire with pictures to evaluate the liking for fatty, salty, sweet, and umami sensations of Japanese respondents. This questionnaire focuses on typical seasonings added to different Japanese food items and provides objective information about liking different food sensations. Thus, it has application as an important screening tool to identify respondents who may need to make their food consumption behavior more healthy. Moreover, following minor modifications, this questionnaire could also be used in other Asian countries where plain white rice is the stable food.