PMID: 

FASEB J. 2005 Oct ;19(12):1686-8. Epub 2005 Aug 22. PMID: 16116041

Abstract Title: 

Electromagnetic fields affect transcript levels of apoptosis-related genes in embryonic stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells.

Abstract: 

Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were used as an experimental model to study the effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF). ES-derived nestin-positive neural progenitor cells were exposed to extremely low frequency EMF simulating power line magnetic fields at 50 Hz (ELF-EMF) and to radiofrequency EMF simulating the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) signals at 1.71 GHz (RF-EMF). Following EMF exposure, cells were analyzed for transcript levels of cell cycle regulatory, apoptosis-related, and neural-specific genes and proteins; changes in proliferation; apoptosis; and cytogenetic effects. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that ELF-EMF exposure to ES-derived neural cells significantly affected transcript levels of the apoptosis-related bcl-2, bax, and cell cycle regulatory"growth arrest DNA damage inducible"GADD45 genes, whereas mRNA levels of neural-specific genes were not affected. RF-EMF exposure of neural progenitor cells resulted in down-regulation of neural-specific Nurr1 and in up-regulation of bax and GADD45 mRNA levels. Short-term RF-EMF exposure for 6 h, but not for 48 h, resulted in a low and transient increase of DNA double-strand breaks. No effects of ELF- and RF-EMF on mitochondrial function, nuclear apoptosis, cell proliferation, and chromosomal alterations were observed. We may conclude that EMF exposure of ES-derived neural progenitor cells transiently affects the transcript level of genes related to apoptosis and cell cycle control. However, these responses are not associated with detectable changes of cell physiology, suggesting compensatory mechanisms at the translational and posttranslational level.

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PMID: 

Altern Lab Anim. 2004 Oct ;32(4):355-60. PMID: 15651919

Abstract Title: 

Cellular effects of electromagnetic fields.

Abstract: 

Studies at the cellular level are needed to reveal the cellular and molecular biological mechanisms underlying the biological effects and possible health implications of non-ionising radiation, such as extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic fields (MFs) and radiofrequency (RF) fields. Our research group has studied the effects of 50 Hz ELF MFs (caused by power lines and electric devices) and 872 MHz or 900 MHz RFs (emitted by mobile phones and their base stations) on cellular ornithine decarboxylase activity, cell cycle kinetics, cell proliferation, and necrotic or apoptotic cell death. For RFs, pulse-modulated (217 Hz modulation frequency corresponding a global system for mobile communication-type signal) or continuous wave (unmodulated) signals were used. To expose the cell cultures to MFs or RFs, specially developed exposure systems were used, where levels of electromagnetic field exposure and the conditions of cell culture could be precisely controlled. A coexposure approach was used in many studies, i.e. the cell cultures were exposed to other stressors in addition to MFs or RFs. Ultraviolet radiation, serum deprivation, or fresh medium addition, were used as co-exposures. The results presented in this short review show that the effects of mere MFs or RF on cell culture models are quite minor, but that various co-exposure approaches warrant additional study.

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PMID: 

J Neurol Sci. 2009 Feb 15 ;277(1-2):58-64. Epub 2008 Nov 12. PMID: 19007942

Abstract Title: 

Paeonol attenuates neurotoxicity and ameliorates cognitive impairment induced by d-galactose in ICR mice.

Abstract: 

In the present study, we examined the supplementation of paeonol extracted from Moutan cortex of Paeonia suffruticosa Andrews (MC) or the root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall (PL) on reducing oxidative stress, cognitive impairment and neurotoxicity in d-galactose (D-gal)-induced aging mice. The ICR mice were subcutaneously injected with D-gal (50 mg/(kg day)) for 60 days and administered with paeonol (50, 100 mg/(kg day)) simultaneously. The results showed that paeonol significantly improved the learning and memory ability in Morris water maze test and step-down passive avoidance test in D-gal-treated mice. Further investigation showed that the effect of paeonol on improvement of cognitive deficit was related to its ability to inhibit the biochemical changes in brains of D-gal-treated mice. Paeonol increased acetylcholine (Ach) and glutathione (GSH) levels, restored superoxide dismutase (SOD) and Na(+), K(+)-adenosine triphosphatase (Na(+), K(+)-ATPase) activities, but decreased cholinesterase AChe activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) level in D-gal-treated mice. Furthermore, paeonol ameliorated neuronal damage in both hippocampus and temporal cortex in D-gal-treated mice. These results suggest that paeonol possesses anti-aging efficacy and may have potential in treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

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PMID: 

PLoS One. 2012 ;7(8):e42332. Epub 2012 Aug 1. PMID: 22870319

Abstract Title: 

Exposure to 1950-MHz TD-SCDMA electromagnetic fields affects the apoptosis of astrocytes via caspase-3-dependent pathway.

Abstract: 

The usage of mobile phone increases globally. However, there is still a paucity of data about the impact of electromagnetic fields (EMF) on human health. This study investigated whether EMF radiation would alter the biology of glial cells and act as a tumor-promoting agent. We exposed rat astrocytes and C6 glioma cells to 1950-MHz TD-SCDMA for 12, 24 and 48 h respectively, and found that EMF exposure had differential effects on rat astroctyes and C6 glioma cells. A 48 h of exposure damaged the mitochondria and induced significant apoptosis of astrocytes. Moreover, caspase-3, a hallmark of apoptosis, was highlighted in astrocytes after 48 h of EMF exposure, accompanied by a significantly increased expression of bax and reduced level of bcl-2. The tumorigenicity assays demonstrated that astrocytes did not form tumors in both control and exposure groups. In contrast, the unexposed and exposed C6 glioma cells show no significant differences in both biological feature and tumor formation ability. Therefore, our results implied that exposure to the EMF of 1950-MHz TD-SCDMA may not promote the tumor formation, but continuous exposure damaged the mitochondria of astrocytes and induce apoptosis through a caspase-3-dependent pathway with the involvement of bax and bcl-2.

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PMID: 

Phytomedicine. 2009 Nov ;16(11):1027-32. Epub 2009 Jun 21. PMID: 19541467

Abstract Title: 

Paeonol from Paeonia suffruticosa prevents TNF-alpha-induced monocytic cell adhesion to rat aortic endothelial cells by suppression of VCAM-1 expression.

Abstract: 

Paeonol (2'-hydroxy-4'-methoxyacetophenone), the main active compound of the radix of Paeonia suffruticosa, has been reported to have a beneficial effect in prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), plays a crucial role in case of early inflammatory responses, including atherosclerosis. In this study, we investigated the effect of paeonol on TNF-alpha-induced VCAM-1 expression in rat aortic endothelial cells (RAECs). The VCAM-1 expression in paeonol treated RAECs was measured. Paeonol inhibited TNF-alpha-induced VCAM-1 expression in a concentration-dependent manner. TNF-alpha induced p38 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) activities that contributed to VCAM-1expression was obviously attenuated after pre-treating RAECs with paeonol. The decrease of VCAM-1 expression by paeonol pretreatment led to a reduction of monocytes adhesion to RAECs. Taken together, our results demonstrated that paeonol inhibited VCAM-1 expression by the attenuation of p38 and ERK1/2 signal transduction pathways. We concluded that paeonol had the potential therapeutic development for use in anti-inflammatory and vascular disorders.

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PMID: 

Biomed Environ Sci. 2013 Jan ;26(1):76-8. PMID: 23294619

Abstract Title: 

The induction of Epstein-Barr Virus early antigen expression in Raji cells by GSM mobile phone radiation.

Abstract: 

[N/A]

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PMID: 

Biol Pharm Bull. 2009 Jul ;32(7):1142-7. PMID: 19571375

Abstract Title: 

Paeonol exerts anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic activities through downmodulation of Akt activation and inactivation of matrix metalloproteinases.

Abstract: 

Paeonol (2'-hydroxy-4'-methoxyacetophenone) is known to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative activities. Recently there is evidence that anti-inflammatory agents may be useful in the setting of angiogenesis-related diseases. Thus in the present study the anti-angiogenic activity of paeonol and its mechanism were investigated in vitro and in vivo. Paeonol significantly inhibited proliferation of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF)-stimulated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Paeonol also significantly inhibited migration and tube formation of bFGF-stimulated HUVECs in vitro. In addition, paeonol significantly suppressed neovessel formation on bFGF-treated chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) and disrupted bFGF-induced neovascularization in Matrigel plug assay in vivo. Furthermore, paeonol downregluated Akt phosphorylation in bFGF-stimulated HUVECs and reduced expression of matrix metalloproteinases-2 and -9 in HT1080 human fibrosarcoma cells. The Akt inhibitor LY294002 synergistically potentiated paeonol-induced inactivation of Akt and vascular endothelial growth factor in bFGF-treated HUVECs. Taken together, these findings suggest that paeonol can be a potent suppressor of angiogenesis and metastasis partially through inhibition of Akt signaling pathway and matrix metalloproteinase activity.

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PMID: 

Zhonghua Yu Fang Yi Xue Za Zhi. 2002 Sep ;36(5):291-4. PMID: 12411184

Abstract Title: 

[The microarray study on the stress gene transcription profile in human retina pigment epithelial cells exposed to microwave radiation].

Abstract: 

OBJECTIVE: To study the difference in stress and apoptosis related genes transcription between hTERT-RPE1 cells exposed to simulated microwave radiation and the cells with heat water bath, and the effects of microwave on gene transcription in cultured human retina pigment epithelial cells.METHODS: cDNA microarray technique was used to detect the mRNA isolated from hTERT-RPE1 cells exposed to 2 450 MHz simulated microwave radiation and with heat water bath, respectively.RESULTS: Among the 97 related aim genes, there were seven genes up-regulating its transcription, i.e., M31166 (2.52fold), L24123 (2.66fold), AF039704 (2.22fold), U67156 (2.07fold), AF040958 (2.13fold), NM-001423 (2.63fold) and NM-005346 (3.68fold). But, no notably down-regulating gene in transcription was detected.CONCLUSIONS: Microwave could induce up-regulating in multiple stress and apoptosis related genes transcription in cultured human retina pigment epithelial cells, hTERT-RPE1 cells. Microwave radiation has unique effect itself in addition to its heat effect.

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PMID: 

World J Gastroenterol. 2009 Sep 21 ;15(35):4410-4. PMID: 19764092

Abstract Title: 

Influence of paeonol on expression of COX-2 and p27 in HT-29 cells.

Abstract: 

AIM: To investigate the effect of paeonol on controlling the proliferation of colorectal cancer cell line HT-29 and to discuss its possible mechanism.METHODS: The inhibitory effect of paeonol on proliferation of HT-29 cells was detected by MTT assay. The results of apoptosis were measured by flow cytometry. Immunocytochemical staining was performed to detect the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and protein p27 in HT-29 cells treated with paeonol at different concentrations. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used for mRNA analysis.RESULTS: From the data of both MTT and flow cytometry, we observed that cell proliferation was inhibited by different concentrations of paeonol. By immunocytochemical staining, we found that HT-29 cells treated with paeonol (0.024-1.504 mmol/L) reflected reduced expression of COX-2 and increased expression of p27 in a dose-dependent manner. RT-PCR showed that paeonol down-regulated COX-2 and up-regulated p27 in a dose- and time-dependent manner in HT-29 cells.CONCLUSION: One of the apoptotic mechanisms of paeonol is down-regulation of COX-2. p27 is up-regulated simultaneously and plays an important part in controlling cell proliferation and is a crucial factor in the Fas/FasL apoptosis pathway.

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PMID: 

Zhong Yao Cai. 2009 Apr ;32(4):564-7. PMID: 19645243

Abstract Title: 

[Effect of paeonol on protecting endothelial cells of diabetic rats].

Abstract: 

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of paeonol on protecting endothelial cells of diabetic rats.METHODS: Streptozocin was used on rats to make diabetic models. Different dosages of paeonol were fed on all the model rats. PGI, TXA2, ET, CRP, ICAM-1, VCAM-1 and NO were tested after 30 day's therapy.RESULTS: Compared with control group PGI increased from 89.75 +/- 2.75, 89.97 +/- 7.28, 89.97 +/- 11.36 to 120.03 +/- 13.85, 108.34 +/- 11.25, 105.32 +/- 8.85, respectively. TXA2 decreased from 157.64 +/- 10.36, 156.64 +/- 11.35, 153.33 +/- 19.40 to 124.46 +/- 18.67, 136.40 +/- 18.15, 138.40 +/- 22.20, respectively. ET decreased from 181.68 +/- 5.10, 181.27 +/- 4.76, 181.04 +/- 4.19 to 140.55 +/- 3.01, 150.51 +/- 2.22, 161.02 +/- 3.76, respectively. CRP decreased from 41.63 +/- 7.37, 44.83 +/- 7.80, 42.06 +/- 7.21 to 28.62 +/- 5.45, 30.00 +/- 10.73, 37.09 +/- 4.94, respectively. ICAM-1 decreased from 225.77 +/- 11.96, 222.78 +/- 14.46, 225.17 +/- 10.03 to 190.93 +/- 12.67, 197.42 +/- 14.56, 200.64 +/- 15.36, respectively. VCAM-1 decreased from 566.72 +/- 24.46, 560.61 +/- 25.67, 359.61 +/- 42.75 to 506.26 +/- 37.26, 516.83 +/- 28.17, 527.02 +/- 43.47, respectively. NO had no change.CONCLUSIONS: Paeonol can protect the endothelial cells of diabetic rats.

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