Long term and excessive use of 900 MHz radiofrequency radiation alter microRNA expression in brain

Abstract

Purpose: We still do not have any information on the interaction between radiofrequency radiation (RF) and miRNA, which play paramount role in growth, differentiation, proliferation and cell death by suppressing one or more target genes. The purpose of this study was to bridge this gap by investigating effects of long-term 900 MHz mobile phone exposure on some of the miRNA in brain tissue.

Materials and methods: The study was carried out on 14 Wistar Albino adult male rats by dividing them into two groups: Sham (n = 7) and exposure (n = 7). Rats in the exposure group were exposed to 900 MHz RF radiation for 3 h per day (7 days a week) for 12 months (one year). The same procedure was applied to the rats in the sham group except the generator was turned off. Immediately after the last exposure, rats were sacrificed and their brains were removed. rno-miR-9-5p, rno-miR-29a-3p, rno-miR-106b-5p, rno-miR-107 and rno-miR-125a-3p in brain were investigated in detail.

Results: Results revealed that long-term exposure of 900 MHz RF radiation only decreased rno-miR107 (adjP* = 0.045) value where the whole body (rms) SAR value was 0.0369 W/kg. However, our results indicated that other microRNA evaluated in this study was not altered by 900 MHz RF radiation.

Conclusion: 900 MHz RF radiation can alter some of the miRNA, which, in turn, may lead to adverse effects. Therefore, further studies should be performed.

Keywords::

• Mobile phones
• 900 MHz RF radiation
• miRNA
• brain
• diseases

Acknowledgements

The authors thank to Assoc. Prof. Ediz Yorgancilar from Medical School of Dicle University for his valuable contributions.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.