Concentrazione Melatonica Umanij.1600-079X.1998.Tb00393.x

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Pineal Res 1998; 25:240-244

Printed rn the United Stares

o

A m e r i c w l l rights reserved

Copyright Munksgaard 998

Journal

of

Pineal Research

lSSN 0742 3098

Chronic exposure to 2.9 mT, 40 Hz magnetic field

reduces melatonin concentrations in humans

Karasek

M ,

Woldanska-Okonska

M,

Czernicki

J,

Zylinska

K,

Swietoslawski J Chronic exposure

to

2.9 mT, 40 Hz magnetic field

reduces melatonin concentrations

in

humans.

J

Pineal Res. 1998 ; 25:240-

244.0 Munksgaard, Copenhagen

Abstract: Diurnal

rhythm

of serum melatonin concentrations

was estimated

in

12 men

with

low back

pain

syndrome before and after exposure to a very

low-frequency magnetic field (2 .9

mT,

40 Hz, square wave, bipolar).

Patients were

exposed to the

magnetic

field for 3 weeks

(20 min per day, 5

days

per

week) either

in

the

morning (at

O:OO

hr) or

in

the late afternoon

(at

8:OO

hr).

Significant depression in nocturnal melatonin rise was

observed regardless of

the

time of

exposure. This phenomenon

was

characteristic

for

all

the

subjects,

although

the

percent

of

inhibition

of

melatonin secretion

varied among the studied individuals.

Mich al Karasek , Mar ta

Woldanska-Okonska, Jan

C ~ e r n i c k i , ~r ys ty na Z y i i n ~ k a , ~

and Jacek Swietos lawsk i

Laboratory of Electron Microscopy, Chair

of Pathomorphology, Medical University of

Lodz, Lodz, Poland: Division of

Rehabilitation Medicine, District Hospital

in Sieradz, Sieradz, Poland; 3Department

of Rehabilitation Medicine, Military

Medical Academy of Lodz, Lodz, Poland:

4Department of Experimental

Endocrinology and Hormone Diagnostics,

Institute of Endocrinology, Medical

University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

Key words: melatonin magnetic field

low-frequency magnetic field

physiotherapy ow back pain syndrome

Address reprint requests to Prof. Dr.

Michal Karasek, Laboratory of Electron

Microscopy, Chair of Pathomorphology,

Medical University of Lodz, 91-425 Lodz,

Sterlinga

5,

Poland. E-mail:

[email protected]

Received February 3, 1998;

accepted Api rll 4, 1998.

i n t r oduc t i on rological diseases, including multiple sclerosis,

In numerous animal studies, magnetic field (MF)

has been shown

to

alter pineal function [Welker

et

al., 1983; Richardson et al., 1992; Kato et al., 1993;

Reiter, 1993a,b; Selmaoui and Touitou, 1995; John

et al., 19961. How ever, the data on its influence o n

human melatonin levels are scarce and contradic-

tory [W ilson et al., 1990; Pfluger and Minder, 1996;

Selma oui et al., 1996; Graham et al., 1996, 19971.

On the other hand, very low-frequency M F has

many beneficial effects, including improvement of

oxygen util ization and tissue respiration, vaso-

dilatory and angiogenetic action, improvement of

soft tissue regeneration processes, anti-inflammatory

Parkinson s d isease , migraine a nd-vasom otor ic

headaches, stroke, and low back pain syndrome

[Sandyk,

1992a,b;

Sieron

et

al., 1994; Fisher, 1996;

Woldanska-Okonska and Czernicki, 19951. Low -fre-

quency MF is also used in physiotherapy of over-

l o a d i n g s y n d r o me s

of

t h e l o c o mo t o r s y s t e m,

including degenerative processes of the bones and

joints, retarded bone adhesion, and rheumatoid ar-

thritis [Halmovici, 1980; Basset, 1993; Sieron et al.,

1994; Fisher, 19961. Therefore, we decided to study

the diurnal rhythm of melatonin concentrations in

subjects with low back pain syndrome before and

after exposure to low-frequency M E

action, acceleration of bone adhesion formation, and

analgesic action [Basset, 1993; Sieron et al., 1994;

Fisher, 19961. Because of these effects, low-fre-

quency MF is used in physiotherapy of some neu-

240

Material and m ethods

The study was performed in 12 men (mean age, 42.9

years; range, 32-55) with low back pain syndrom e,



Magnetic field and melatonin

were collected at

08:00,

12:00, 16:00,20:00,24:00,

02:00, 04:00, and 08:OO hr; the nighttime samples

were taken under dim red light. All blood samples

were allowed to clot for 45 min; serum was removed

after centrifugation and stored at

-20°C

until as-

sayed. Melatonin concentration was measured

us-

ing RIA kit (DRG Instr. GmbH, Marburg, Cat. No.

IH

RE 29301): intra assay CV,

8

and inter assay

CV, 14.8 . The samples from all subjects (both pre-

and post-assay) run together. The data were statis-

tically analyzed using paired Student’s t test.

The study has been approved by the Regional

Committee for Studies with Human Subjects. The

experimental protocol was explained to each patient,

and informed consent was obtained.

who were admitted to the Division of Medical Re-

habilitation of the Regional Hospital in Sieradz. The

patients did not suffer from other chronic diseases

or recent serious acute illness, they were not shift

workers, and they had regular sleep habits.

No

medi-

cations were takes at least 1 month prior to the

study. The patients were divided into two groups of

six subjects each. a pulsating magnetic field (2.9

mT, 40 Hz, square wave, bipolar) generated by a

Magnetronic MF 10 apparatus (Electromedical

Plant, Otwock, Poland) was applied either in the

morning (at O:OO hr, group 1) or in the late after-

noon (at

8:OO

hr, group 2) for 3 weeks (20 min per

day, 5 days per week). The Magnetronic MF 10de-

vice was applied as a coil in lower back region. The

parameters given by the manufacturer were checked

before exposure. The study was performed in May

and June.

Diurnal serum melatonin profiles were estimated

a day before exposure to MF (baseline), and the day

after the last exposure. Each subject served as his

own control.

On

the day before and during blood

sampling, the period of darkness in the patients’

room lasted from

22:OO

to 06:OO hr. Blood samples

Resul ts

Chronic exposure to low-frequency MF caused a

significant depression in nocturnal melatonin rise in

patients with low back pain syndrome, no matter

whether the MF was applied in the morning or in

the late afternoon (Figs. 1-3). This phenomenon was

characteristic for all the subjects, although the de-

hOUIS hours hours

hours

Fig.

1 Individual diurnal serum melatonin profiles in subjects exposed to MF at O:OO hr A-F)

or at

8:OO hr G-L),

before (solid line) and after (dotted line) exposure.

241





Magnetic field and melatonin

The results of the present study show that chronic

exposure of men to low-frequency MF resulted in

a decrease of melatonin concentrations, especially

its nocturnal values, no matter whether MF was ap-

plied in the morning or in the late afternoon. This

phenomenon was observed to lesser or greater ex-

tent in all the examined individuals.

Considerable differences among various studies

seem to depend

on

different experimental para-

digms. Certain characteristics of the applied MF

(such as, e.g., field strength, frequency, duration,

applied vector, etc.), acute or chronic exposure, and

differences in exposure time and duration may de-

termine the observed effects. Moreover, according

to

John

et al. [1996], the differences also may be

due to factors that could interfere with the results

of MF studies. Among these factors, the existence

of possible seasonal effects due to a synchroniza-

tion or desynchronization with geomagnetic field or

concomitant exposure factors, such as, e.g., vibra-

tion, noise, etc., should be considered.

latonin content, but those parameters were not in-

fluenced when MF was applied early in the dark

phase or during the day.

Exposure of Djungarian hamsters to 0.1 mT, 60

Hz MF resulted in a decrease in melatonin noctur-

nal concentrations but only in two of three identi-

cal experiments performed in 6 month intervals

[Yellon, 19941. Moreover, the nighttime rise in me-

latonin levels was delayed, and duration reduced in

Djungarian hamsters after acute exposure to 0.1 mT,

60 Hz MF for

15

min before dark, both during long

(16 hr of light) or short (10 hr of light) days. How-

ever, after 3 weeks of exposure, pineal and serum

melatonin rhythms did not differ in MF-exposed and

unexposed groups [Yellon, 19961. Exposure to 2.0

T MF did not change melatonin levels in mice

[Levine et al., 19951.

It has been shown that

MF

suppressed melatonin

synthesis in the pineal gland of rats only in animals

with intact visual system [Olcese et al., 1985a,b].

Therefore, it has been suggested that the pineal gland

itself is not magnetosensitive and the retinal compo-

nent may be involved in magnetoreception [Reuss and

Olcese, 19861. However, the observation of the de-

crease of melatonin production in rat pineal glands in

vitro [Lerchl et al., 1991; Richardson et al., 19921 in-

dicates that the possibility of direct MF action at the

pineal level should not be ruled out.

In nonhuman primates it has been shown that

regularly scheduled, daytime, s low onset 60 Hz

electric and magnetic field exposure did not depress

melatonin levels [Rogers et al., 1995al but reduc-

tion was observed after rapid-onset/offset, variably

scheduled fields [Rogers et al., 1995bl.

Similar to the animal studies there are also some in-

consistencies in the results of studies on effects of MF

exposure on melatonin synthesis in humans. Changes

in urinary 6-OHMS levels were demonstrated after

exposure to electromagnetic field produced by continu-

ous polymer wire (CPW) electric blankets in some in-

dividuals but not in those using standard electric

blankets that produced 50 lower MF than that pro-

duced by CPW blankets [Wilson et al., 19901. Low-

ered daytime urinary 6-OHMS levels were found in

Swiss railway engineers exposed to low-frequency (ca.

20

mT, 16.7 Hz)

MF

compared to controls but noc-

turnal 6-OHMS levels did not appear to be altered

[Pfluger and Minder, 19961. No changes were found

in either serum melatonin or in urine 6-sulfatoxy-

melatonin levels in young men after acute exposure (9

hr, from 23:OO to 08:OO hr) to 50 Hz linearly polar-

ized

MF

(10 mT) [Selmaoui et

al.,

19961. Graham et

al. [1996; 19973 did not fmd any effect of either inter-

mittent or continuous exposure to 1 pmT or 20pT 0

Hz

MF

on nocturnal blood melatonin levels in human

volunteers.

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a grant from the Medical Uni-

versity of Lodz (503).

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