Effects of Extremely Low Frequency Electromagnetic Field on Mouse Liver Histology

Despite widespread use of electromagnetic field (EMF) generator devices in everyday life, their effects on biological tissues are still controversial. In the present study, the effects of EMF on the mouse liver were studied. Thirty female balb/c mice were randomly divided into three groups: 1- EMF-exposed, 2-Sham, and 3-Control. EMF group was exposed to 50 Hz & 0.5 mT EMF 4 hours daily for 2 months while the animals in sham group were placed in EMF device without exposure. At the end of 2-month period, all animals were anesthetized and their livers were removed. After preparation of microscopic slides, the panoramic view of liver, the number of Kupffer and necrotic cells were determined using ‘Image Tool’ software. The data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA and Dunnett's tests. p<0.05 was considered as statically significant. The comparison of data showed that the mean number of Kupffer cells in EMF group significantly increased compared to sham and control group (p<0.001 for both), while the mean number of Kupffer cells in sham group showed no significant difference compared to control group. The mean number of necrotic cells in experimental groups had no significant increase compared to sham and control groups. There were no significant differences in the mean number of necrotic cells between sham and control groups. Qualitative studies also showed no disorganization in the structure of liver lobules and sinusoids in the exposed group compared to sham and control groups. According to the results of this study, longtime exposure to electromagnetic field could increase Kupffer cells but do not affect the necrosis of liver cells in mice.