Activity and expression of acetylcholinesterase in PC12 cells exposed to intermittent 1.8 GHz 217-GSM mobile phone signal

Purpose Due to its role in learning, memory and in many neurodegenerative diseases, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) represents an interesting endpoint to assess possible targets of exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) generated by mobile phones. We investigated possible alterations of enzymatic activity, gene and protein expression of AChE in neuronal-like cells exposed to a 1.8 GHz Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) modulated signal (217-GSM).Materials and methods Rat PC12 cells were exposed for 24 h to 1.8 GHz 217-GSM signal. Specific adsorption rate (SAR) was 2 W/kg. AChE enzyme activity was assessed spectrophotometrically by Ellmans method, mRNA expression level was evaluated by real time polymerase chain reaction, and protein expression was assessed by Western blotting.Results AChE enzymatic activity increased of 1.4-fold in PC12 cells exposed to 217-GSM signal for 24 h, whilst AChE transcriptional or translational pathways were not affected.Conclusion Our results provide the first evidence of effects on AChE activity after in vitro exposure of mammalian cells to the RF-EMF generated by GSM mobile phones, at the SAR value 2 W/kg. The obtained evidence promotes further investigations on AChE as a possible target of RF-EMF and confirm the ability of 1.8 GHz 217-GSM signal to induce biological effects in different mammalian cells.