title: Effects of gestational exposure to 1.95-GHz W-CDMA signals for IMT-2000 cellular phones: Lack of embryotoxicity and teratogenicity in rats.
abstract: The present study was designed to evaluate whether gestational exposure to an EMF targeting the head region, similar to that from cellular phones, might affect embryogenesis in rats. A 1.95-GHz wide-band code division multiple access (W-CDMA) signal, which is one applied for the International Mobile Telecommunication 2000 (IMT-2000) system and used for the freedom of mobile multimedia access (FOMA), was employed for exposure to the heads of four groups of pregnant CD(SD) IGS rats (20 per group) for gestational days 7-17. The exposure was performed for 90 min/day in the morning. The spatial average specific absorption rate (SAR) for individual brains was designed to be 0.67 and 2.0 W/kg with peak brain SARs of 3.1 and 7.0 W/kg for low (group 3) and high (group 4) exposures, respectively, and a whole-body average SAR less than 0.4 W/kg so as not to cause thermal effects due to temperature elevation. Control and sham exposure groups were also included. At gestational day 20, all dams were killed and fetuses were taken out by cesarean section. There were no differences in maternal body weight gain. No adverse effects of EMF exposure were observed on any reproductive and embryotoxic parameters such as number of live (243-271 fetuses), dead or resorbed embryos, placental weights, sex ratios, weights or external, visceral or skeletal abnormalities of live fetuses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Pathology and Tumor Biology, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan.
authors.forename: Kumiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogawa
authors.forename: Kyoko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nabae
authors.forename: Jianqing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Kanako
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wake
authors.forename: So-ichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Mayumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawabe
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Toshio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ichihara
authors.forename: Seiko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tamano
authors.forename: Tomoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shirai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000528:radiation effects*; D040421:Cell Phone; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000209:etiology; D004574:Electromagnetic Fields / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000528:radiation effects*; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D018811:Maternal Exposure; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000528:radiation effects; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley