1st International and 10th National Iranian Conference on Bioinformatics

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Reaction-diffusion modeling suggests a novel amplification mechanism for the extremely-low frequency magnetic field bioeffects

Paper ID : 1243-ICB10

Authors:

Amirali Zandieh, Abas Ali Ravassipour, Seyed Peyman Shariatpanahi *, Bahram Goliaei

Department of Biophysics, Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract:

There have been a growing number of researches indicating the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) as a mediating agent for the observed effect of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) on living organisms. Here we propose a mechanism to explain how interactions with energy dozens of magnitudes below kBT are not being masked by thermal noise.
Grounded on the previously discovered phenomenon of “Radical Pair Mechanism”, first, we introduce a scheme that suggests how applying a low-intensity magnetic field of the order of a few tens of milliTeslas can alter the superoxide production rate at Qo site of mitochondrial cytochrome bc1. Our proposal is well-backed by a recent experimental finding that indicates changes in mitochondrial electron transport chain ROS production under the effect of magnetic fields.
Next, using a reaction-diffusion model previously developed for the simulation of the observed oscillation of ROS level in myocytes, we show how the mentioned superoxide production change can raise the whole cellular ROS level via amplification. Mitochondrial ROS production level is generally escalated in cancerous cells through mutations which in turn can contribute to the transformation of healthy cells into tumors. The results of the model reveal how an alternating magnetic field can amplify the change in superoxide production in such cells via two modes: Either by inducing a whole cellular ROS oscillation in the case of the cells with borderline mitochondrial ROS level or by synchronizing the mitochondria in the cells with asynchronous mitochondrial ROS oscillation through a resonance effect.
Finally, the proposed model is in good agreement with our recent experimental fluorescence microscopy study in which we observed frequency-dependent changes in both mitochondrial membrane potential and ROS level under the effect of alternating magnetic fields. Also, the observed bimodal responses of the different cell lines provide further support for our novel mechanism.

Keywords:

Reaction-diffusion Modeling; Amplification; Reactive Oxygen Species; ELF Magnetic Field; Radical Pair Mechanism

Status : Paper Accepted (Poster Presentation)