Correlation between ELF-PEMF exposure and Human RPE Cell Proliferation, Apoptosis and Gene Expression

Morteza Oladnabi; Mohammad Amir Mishan; Mozhgan Rezaeikanavi; Mehryar Zargari; Rouhallah Najjar Sadeghi; Abouzar Bagheri

doi:10.18502/jovr.v16i2.9084

Correlation between ELF-PEMF exposure and Human RPE Cell Proliferation, Apoptosis and Gene Expression

J Ophthalmic Vis Res. 2021 Apr 29;16(2):202-211. doi: 10.18502/jovr.v16i2.9084. eCollection 2021 Apr-Jun.

Authors

Morteza Oladnabi^{1

2

3}, Mohammad Amir Mishan^{4

3}, Mozhgan Rezaeikanavi⁴, Mehryar Zargari⁵, Rouhallah Najjar Sadeghi⁵, Abouzar Bagheri⁵

Affiliations

¹ Stem Cell Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.
² Ischemic Disorders Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.
³ Both authors contributed equally to the manuscript.
⁴ Ocular Tissue Engineering Research Center, Research Institute for Ophthalmology and Vision Science, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁵ Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.

Abstract

Purpose: Emerging evidence implies that electromagnetic fields (EMFs) can negatively affect angiogenesis. In this regard, the effects of extremely low frequency pulsed electromagnetic field (ELF-PEMF) exposure on the relative expression level of angiogenic factors involved in the pathogenesis of ocular disorders were evaluated in human retinal pigment epithelial (hRPE) cells in order to investigate a noninvasive therapeutic method for patients with several ocular diseases associated with neovascularization.

Methods: After separating hRPE cells from globes, hRPE cells were exposed to 15 mT of ELF-PEMF (120 Hz) at 5, 10, and 15 min for seven days. Cell proliferation and apoptosis of treated cells were evaluated via ELISA assay. Moreover, relative expression changes of HIF-1α, CTGF, VEGFA, MMP-2, cathepsin D, and E2F3 were performed using real-time RT-PCR.

Results: ELF-PEMF exposure had no significant effects on the apoptosis and proliferation rate of hRPE cells. Expression level of HIF-1α, CTGF, VEGFA, MMP-2, cathepsin D, and E2F3 was downregulated following 5 min of ELF-PEMF exposure.

Conclusion: As ELF-PEMF showed inhibitory effects on the expression of angiogenic genes in hRPE cells with no cytotoxic or proliferative side effects, it can be introduced as a useful procedure for managing angiogenesis induced by retinal pathogenesis, although more studies with adequate follow-up in animal models are needed.

Keywords: ELF–PEMFs; hRPE Cells; Angiogenic Factors.