A. Lacyhulbert et al., NO EFFECT OF 60 HZ ELECTROMAGNETIC-FIELDS ON MYC OR BETA-ACTIN EXPRESSION IN HUMAN LEUKEMIC-CELLS, Radiation research, 144(1), 1995, pp. 9-17
Epidemiological studies have shown weak correlations between exposure
to extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields(ELF EMFs) and the in
cidence of several cancers, particularly childhood leukemias, although
negative studies have also been reported. These observations have pro
mpted a broad range of in vitro cellular studies in which effects of E
LF EMFs have been observed. However, no reported response has been rep
licated widely in independent laboratories. One potentially important
response is the rapid activation of proto-oncogenes and other genes in
human leukemic (HL60) cells and a wide variety of other eukaryotic ce
lls, because of the role of these genes in cell proliferation. We desc
ribe quantitative Northern analysis of MYC and beta-actin mRNAs from H
L60 cells exposed to fields under conditions very similar to those rep
orted previously to activate these genes, namely 60 Hz sinusoidal magn
etic fields of 0.57, 5.7 or 57 mu T for 20 min. In addition we have us
ed a new design of field-exposure system and introduced a number of ot
her modifications to the protocol to optimize any response. We have al
so developed a novel method providing enhanced accuracy for the quanti
tative measurement of mRNA. No significant effect of ELF EMFs on gene
expression was observed using any of these systems and analytical meth
ods. (C) 1995 by Radiation Research Society