Mobile phone radiation inhibits Vigna radiata (mung bean) root growth by inducing oxidative stress Ved Parkash Sharma a,b , Harminder Pal Singh a, ⁎, Ravinder Kumar Kohli c , Daizy Rani Batish c a Department of Environment and Vocational Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh 160014, India b Department of Zoology, Panjab University, Chandigarh 160014, India c Department of Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh 160014, India abstract article info Article history: Received 28 April 2009 Received in revised form 3 July 2009 Accepted 7 July 2009 Available online 13 August 2009 Keywords: Cell phone Electromagnetic field radiations (EMFr) Oxidative damage Reactive oxygen species Oxidative stress markers Antioxidant enzymes During the last couple of decades, there has been a tremendous increase in the use of cell phones. It has significantly added to the rapidly increasing EMF smog, an unprecedented type of pollution consisting of radiation in the environment, thereby prompting the scientists to study the effects on humans. However, not many studies have been conducted to explore the effects of cell phone EMFr on growth and biochemical changes in plants. We investigated whether EMFr from cell phones inhibit growth of Vigna radiata (mung bean) through induction of conventional stress responses. Effects of cell phone EMFr (power density: 8.55 μW cm -2 ; 900 MHz band width; for ½, 1, 2, and 4 h) were determined by measuring the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in terms of malondialdehyde and hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) content, root oxidizability and changes in levels of antioxidant enzymes. Our results showed that cell phone EMFr significantly inhibited the germination (at ≥2 h), and radicle and plumule growths (≥1 h) in mung bean in a time-dependent manner. Further, cell phone EMFr enhanced MDA content (indicating lipid peroxidation), and increased H 2 O 2 accumulation and root oxidizability in mung bean roots, thereby inducing oxidative stress and cellular damage. In response to EMFr, there was a significant upregulation in the activities of scavenging enzymes, such as superoxide dismutases, ascorbate peroxidases, guaiacol peroxidases, catalases and glutathione reductases, in mung bean roots. The study concluded that cell phone EMFr inhibit root growth of mung bean by inducing ROS-generated oxidative stress despite increased activities of antioxidant enzymes. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction During the last decade or so there has been an exponential increase in the use of modern electronic equipment and wireless communica- tion devices. It has tremendously enhanced the levels of high frequency non-ionizing electromagnetic field radiations (hereafter EMFr) in the environment (Elwood, 2003). In fact, it has greatly enhanced EMF smog, a novel type of pollution, of varying amplitude in the urban areas due to a wide range of EMFr signals released by GSM (Global Systems for Mobile Communication) service providers (Levitt and Morrow, 2007). The increasing EMFr levels in the environment have enhanced the concerns of many scientists to study their biochemical and physiological effects on biological systems including microorganisms, animals and humans (Goodman et al., 1995; Polk, 1996; Barteri et al., 2005), and of late, on plants (Belyavskaya, 2004; Sandu et al., 2005; Tkalec et al., 2005). In the natural environment, plants are exposed to a continuous abiotic stress induced by EMFr. However, very few studies have been conducted to explore the effect of EMFr on the growth and physiology of the plants. For example, Balodis et al. (1996) reported that radio frequency radiations affect the growth of pines. Soja et al. (2003) reported a reduction in wheat and corn yield in the fields near high tension lines. Sandu et al. (2005) observed a decrease in chlorophyll content in leaves of Robinia pseudoacacia with the treatment of 400 MHz EMFr. However, not much is known about the exact mechanism of action of EMFr in inhibiting plant growth. Rather, the majority of the EMF studies in plants have been conducted on mitotic activity or cytological aspects and related changes. It has been demonstrated that EMFr affect mitotic division, and induces cytolo- gical and ultrastructural changes in pines (Selga and Selga, 1996). Belyavskaya (2004) reported changes in condensed chromatin and nucleolus compactization in plant roots nuclei in response to magnetic fields and attributed these to intensification of protein synthesis and degradation. Recently, Tkalec et al. (2009) reported that exposure to 900 MHz radio frequency waves increased the mitotic index, caused impairment in the mitotic spindle, and hence mitotic abnormalities in root meristematic cells of Allium cepa. Despite these Science of the Total Environment 407 (2009) 5543–5547 ⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +91172 253 4095; fax: +91172 271 4199. E-mail address: hpsingh_01@yahoo.com (H.P. Singh). 0048-9697/$ – see front matter © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.07.006 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Science of the Total Environment journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/scitotenv