Medical/biological study (experimental study)

Ultrawideband radiation and pentylenetetrazol-induced convulsions in rats med./bio.

By: Miller SA, Bronson ME, Murphy MR

Published in: Bioelectromagnetics 1999; 20 (5): 327-329

Aim of study (acc. to author and editor)

To study the effect of ultra wideband exposure on pentylenetetrazol-induced convulsions in rats.

Background/further details

In a previous study (Erwin, D.N. and Hurt, W.H. (1993): Biological effects of ultrawide band emissions. Proceedings of Human Health Effects Science Review Panel. Washington DC.: Theater Nuclear Warfare Program. pp 91-95) it was found that rats exposed to ultra wideband after receiving a convulsant drug tended toward longer latency to the onset of convulsion than the no-exposure group. Although the effect was not statistically significant, it stimulated interest in present investigation. Because seizure activity is a depolarizing shift characteristic of a large excitatory postsynaptic potential, one might expect some change in chemically induced seizure activity if ultra wideband exposure indeed alters biological membranes.
To test this hypothesis, an ED₉₉ dose (the dose at which 99% of the animals exhibit the target response) of the convulsant pentylenetetrazol or a saline solution was given just before ultra wideband or sham exposure. Resultant seizure activity was recorded.

Endpoint

effects on the neurological system: seizure activity

Exposure

- UWB/WB

Exposure	Parameters
Exposure 1: Modulation type: pulsed Exposure duration: 2 min	SAR: 16 µW/g unspecified (unspecified) (at a rate of 1000 pulses/s) electric field strength: 400 V/cm peak value (unspecified) (+/- 5 kV/m)

Exposure 1

Main characteristics

Type	electromagnetic field
Waveform	pulsed
Exposure duration	2 min
Additional info	Reference article: Bao et al. 1995

Modulation

Modulation type	pulsed
Pulse width	1.92 ns
Rise time	176 s
Repetition frequency	1,000 Hz

Exposure setup

Exposure source	UWB-RF Transmitter connected to a parallel plate transmission line
Distance between exposed object and exposure source	0.051 m
Chamber	RF shielded anechoic chamber (3.3 m x 2.4 x 2.0 m) with plastic holding cage set on a 5.1 Styrofoam stage in line with the center of the field.

Parameters

Measurand	Value	Type	Method	Mass	Remarks
SAR	16 µW/g	unspecified	estimated	unspecified	at a rate of 1000 pulses/s
electric field strength	400 V/cm	peak value	measured	unspecified	+/- 5 kV/m

Exposed system:

animal
rat/Sprague-Dawley CD-VAF/Plus
whole body

Methods Endpoint/measurement parameters/methodology

effects on the neurological system: seizure activity (latency; duration; death)

Investigated system:

investigation on living organism

Time of investigation:

during exposure
after exposure

Main outcome of study (acc. to author)

The results show no effect of ultra wideband exposure on pentylenetetrazol-induced seizure activity, at least for the exposure parameters used here.

Study character:

medical/biological study
experimental study
full/main study
Brief Communication

Study funded by

not stated/no funding

Kouchaki E et al. (2016): Effect of mobile phone radiation on pentylenetetrazole-induced seizure threshold in mice
Cinar N et al. (2013): What is the impact of electromagnetic waves on epileptic seizures?
Carballo-Quintas M et al. (2011): A study of neurotoxic biomarkers, c-fos and GFAP after acute exposure to GSM radiation at 900MHz in the picrotoxin model of rat brains
Canseven AG et al. (2007): Pentylenetetrazol-induced seizures are not altered by pre- or post-drug exposure to a 50 Hz magnetic field
Dorsey WC et al. (2005): Induced mitogenic activity in AML-12 mouse hepatocytes exposed to low-dose ultra-wideband electromagnetic radiation