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Calcium efflux of plasma membrane vesicles exposed to ELF magnetic fields—test of a nuclear magnetic resonance interaction model
Author(s) -
Sun Wenjun J.,
Mogadam Mehri Kaviani,
Sommarin Marianne,
Nittby Henrietta,
Salford Leif G.,
Persson Bertil R.R.,
Eberhardt Jacob L.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
bioelectromagnetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.435
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1521-186X
pISSN - 0197-8462
DOI - 10.1002/bem.21726
Subject(s) - bioelectromagnetics , magnetic field , vesicle , nuclear magnetic resonance , amplitude , calcium , extremely low frequency , plasma , chemistry , biophysics , polarization (electrochemistry) , physics , membrane , biochemistry , nuclear physics , biology , optics , quantum mechanics , organic chemistry
The question whether very weak, low frequency magnetic fields can affect biological matter is still under debate. The theoretical possibility of such an interaction is often questioned and the site of interaction in the cell is unknown. In the present study, the influence of extremely weak 60 Hz magnetic fields on the transport of Ca 2+ was studied in a biological system consisting of highly purified plasma membrane vesicles. We tested a newly proposed quantum mechanical model postulates that polarization of hydrogen nuclei can elicit a biological effect. Vesicles were exposed for half an hour at 32 °C and the calcium efflux was studied using radioactive 45 Ca 2+ as a tracer. A static magnetic field of 26 µT and time‐varying magnetic fields with a frequency of 60 Hz and amplitudes between 0.6 and 6.3 µT were used. The predictions of the model, proposed by Lednev, that at a frequency of 60 Hz the biological effect under investigation would significantly be altered at the amplitudes of 1.3 and 3.9 µT could not be confirmed. Bioelectromagnetics 33:535–542, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.