Source
Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226, USA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To evaluate the effects of cellular phone emissions on rat sperm cells.
DESIGN:
Classic experimental.
SETTING:
Animal research laboratory.
SUBJECTS:
Sixteen 3-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats, weighing 250-300 g.
INTERVENTION(S):
Rats in the experimental group were exposed to two 3-hour periods of daily cellular phone emissions for 18 weeks; sperm samples were then collected for evaluation.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S):
Evaluation of sperm motility, sperm cell morphology, total sperm cell number, and mRNA levels for two cell surface adhesion proteins.
RESULT(S):
Rats exposed to 6 hours of daily cellular phone emissions for 18 weeks exhibited a significantly higher incidence of sperm cell death than control group rats through chi-squared analysis. In addition, abnormal clumping of sperm cells was present in rats exposed to cellular phone emissions and was not present in control group rats.
CONCLUSION(S):
These results suggest that carrying cell phones near reproductive organs could negatively affect male fertility.