Low-power density of 950 MHz radiation does not affect long-term potentiation in rat dentate gyrus

Introduction: over the last decade, exposure to non-ionizing electromagnetic waves due to base station antenna has increased. this in vivo study was planned for evaluating the effects of whole-body exposure to 950 mhz field of gsm mobile phone system on rat dentate gyrus long-term potentiation. materials and methods: 24 naive male wistar rats (3 month old, 225+-25 g) were randomly divided in the three groups (sham-exposed, gsm and continuous field exposed). the exposure program was planned for 10 sessions at 3 days. animals were exposed to electromagnetic field for 45 minutes in a circular plastic chamber (mean power density=0.835 mw/cm2). immediately after end exposure, anesthesia was induced for long term potentiation (ltp) induction. field potentials were recorded and analyzed using the population spike amplitude and epsp slope for 60- min. results: there were no significant differences in population spike amplitude, epsp slope and epsp slope maintenance among the three groups. conclusion: this study provides no evidence indicating that long-term potentiation can be affected by the whole-body exposure to low-power density of 950 mhz field of gsm mobile phone system.