Behavioral and physiological effects of chronic 2450-MHz microwave irradiation of the rat at 0. 5 MW/cm sq

Technical Report · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1986

OSTI ID:5283512

D'Andrea, J A; DeWitt, J R; Gandhi, O P; Stensaas, S; Lords, J L

Adult male Long-Evans rats were intermittently exposed to 2450-MHz c-w microwaves at an average power density of 0.5 mW/sq. cm. for 90 days. The resulting SAR was 0.14 W/kg (range 0.11 to 0.18 W/kg). The animals were exposed 7 h/day, 7 days/wk, for a total of 630 h in a monopole-above-ground radiation chamber while housed in Plexiglas holding cages. Daily measures of body mass and food and water intake indicated no statistically significant effects of microwave exposure. Monthly assessment of reactivity to electric footshock, levels of cholinesterase and sulfhydryl groups in blood, and 17-ketosteroids in urine revealed no reliable differences between 14 sham- exposed and 14 microwave-exposed rats. After the 90 days of exposure, seven rats, randomly chosen from each group, were assessed for open-field behavior, shuttlebox performance, and schedule-controlled (IRT schedule) lever pressing for food pellets. Statistically significant differences between microwave-exposed and sham-exposed rats were observed in shuttlebox performances and lever pressing. Post mortem measures of mass of several organs and microscopic examination of adrenal tissue revealed no differences between the two groups of animals.

• Research Organization: Utah Univ., Salt Lake City (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5283512
• Report Number(s): PB-88-177076/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550100 -- Behavioral Biology
560400* -- Other Environmental Pollutant Effects
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
BEHAVIOR
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BIOLOGICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
CHRONIC EXPOSURE
CHRONIC IRRADIATION
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
IRRADIATION
LABORATORY ANIMALS
MAMMALS
MICROWAVE RADIATION
PHYSIOLOGY
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIATIONS
RATS
RODENTS
VERTEBRATES