title: Exposure to 50Hz-sinusoidal electromagnetic field induces DNA damage-independent autophagy.
abstract: As electromagnetic field (EMF) is commonly encountered within our daily lives, the biological effects of EMF are of great concern. Autophagy is a key process for maintaining cellular homeostasis, and it can also reveal cellular responses to environmental stimuli. In this study, we aim to investigate the biological effects of a 50Hz-sinusoidal electromagnetic field on autophagy and we identified its mechanism of action in Chinese Hamster Lung (CHL) cells. CHL cells were exposed to a 50Hz sinusoidal EMF at 0.4mT for 30min or 24h. In this study, we found that a 0.4mT EMF resulted in: (i) an increase in LC3-II expression and increased autophagosome formation; (ii) no significant difference in the incidence of γH2AX foci between the sham and exposure groups; (iii) reorganized actin filaments and increased pseudopodial extensions without promoting cell migration; and (iv) enhanced cell apoptosis when autophagy was blocked by Bafilomycin A1. These results implied that DNA damage was not directly involved in the autophagy induced by a 0.4mT 50Hz EMF. In addition, an EMF induced autophagy balanced the cellular homeostasis to protect the cells from severe adverse biological consequences.
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China.
authors.forename: Yunyun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, PR China.
authors.forename: Ruohong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China.
authors.forename: Hengjun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China.
authors.forename: Yanfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China.
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China.
authors.forename: Yunxian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China. Electronic address: zpxu@zju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Zhengping
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, PR China. Electronic address: zengqunli@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Qunli
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zeng
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000528:radiation effects; D001343:Autophagy / Q000528:radiation effects*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D006224:Cricetinae; D004249:DNA Damage; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D004574:Electromagnetic Fields
chemical_list: D000199:Actins
keywords: Autophagy; Cytoskeleton; DNA double strand breaks; Electromagnetic field; Environmental risk