Electromagnetic Field Effects On rat's Cerebellar Ultrastructure

It is known that prolonged exposure to low intensity electromagnetic field (EMF) is hazardous for biological systems. However, the effect of EMF on human being is controversial. Several epidemiologic and experimental studies have shown that EMF has a harmful effect on central nervous system of animals. Previous research works in our laboratory, using light microscopes have shown that EMF could produce morphological changes in Cerebellum. The aim of the present study is to investigate ultrastructural changes of Cerebellum in EMF-exposed rats. 30 wistar rats were exposed to 3 mT EMF for 4 hours/day in a period of 4 months. After the experimental period rats in control and experimental groups were killed and tissue samples from their Cerebella were prepared for electron microscopic studies. Statistical analysis was performed by means of SPSS software and t-test. p<0.05 was regarded significant. The results of this study clearly demonstrated that the number and size of purkinje cells in EMF-exposed rats were decreased significantly (p<0.01). Other changes included: condensation of nuclei, dilatation of endoplasmic reticulum, vacuolization of cytoplasm, breakdown and disappearance of crista in mitochondria in the purkinje cells of Cerebellum. These findings indicated that long-term exposure to EMF had detrimental effects at cellular level on central nervous system of the rats.