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Fifty-gigahertz Microwave Exposure Effect of Radiations on Rat Brain

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Abstract

The object of this study is to investigate the effects of 50-GHz microwave radiation on the brain of Wistar rats. Male rats of the Wistar strain were used in the study. Animals of 60-day age were divided into two groups—group 1, sham-exposed, and group 2, experimental (microwave-exposed). The rats were housed in a temperature-controlled room (25 °C) with constant humidity (40–50%) and received food and water ad libitum. During exposure, rats were placed in Plexiglas cages with drilled ventilation holes and kept in an anechoic chamber. The animals were exposed for 2 h a day for 45 days continuously at a power level of 0.86 μW/cm2 with nominal specific absorption rate 8.0 × 10−4 w/kg. After the exposure period, the rats were killed and homogenized, and protein kinase C (PKC), DNA double-strand break, and antioxidant enzyme activity [superoxides dismutase (SOD), catalase, and glutathione peroxidase (GPx)] were estimated in the whole brain. Result shows that the chronic exposure to these radiations causes DNA double-strand break (head and tail length, intensity and tail migration) and a significant decrease in GPx and SOD activity (p = <0.05) in brain cells, whereas catalase activity shows significant increase in the exposed group of brain samples as compared with control (p = <0.001). In addition to these, PKC decreased significantly in whole brain and hippocampus (p < 0.05). All data are expressed as mean ± standard deviation. We conclude that these radiations can have a significant effect on the whole brain.

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Acknowledgment

Authors are thankful to Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi, for financial assistance.

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  1. Bioelectromagnetic Laboratory, School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, 110067, India

    Kavindra Kumar Kesari & J. Behari

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Kesari, K.K., Behari, J. Fifty-gigahertz Microwave Exposure Effect of Radiations on Rat Brain. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 158, 126–139 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-008-8469-8

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