The effect of electromagnetic waves on the neuro-immuno-endocrine system of rats

Abstract

The article presents the results of research on the changes in the amount of monoamines in the hypothalamus and blood, the activity of estradiol, cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and thyroid hormones in the blood, and immune reactivity, depending on the exposure time to electromagnetic (EM) waves. Experiments were conducted on 25 female Wistar rats in 5 groups. Depending on the purpose of the study, rats were chronically irradiated for 1 and 2 weeks. The study showed that after the 1st week of irradiation, the concentration of dopamine (DA) and noradrenaline (NA) in the hypothalamus and blood decreased sharply and after the 2nd week, the concentration of these markers decreased to an even lower level. On the contrary, depending on the duration of EM radiation, the amount of serotonin (5-OT) in the hypothalamus and blood increased. Since the interaction mechanism between DA-ergic and serotoninergic systems was violated, the activity of cortisol, ACTH, and estradiol increased while the activity of thyroid hormones decreased. Due to the influence of radiation, the concentration of inflammatory interleukins IL-1β and IL-6 in the blood increased, while the level of α-TNF decreased. γ-INF level changed biphasically. After the 7^th day, it decreased by 14.9% (p<0.05) compared to the norm and by 21.9% (p<0.05) compared to the control group, but after the 14th day, its level decreased by 22.8% (p<0.05) and increased by 10.2% (p<0.05), respectively. In both cases, the concentration of interleukins IL-4 and IL-10, which have an anti-inflammatory effect, decreased significantly in the blood. EM radiation changes the amount of specific and non-specific cells that provide the body's immune response in different directions. The results show that EM waves cause deep disorders in the body's neuro-immuno-endocrine system.