Electromagnetic exposure changes human Schwann cell motility and transcriptomic profile of hearing-loss-related genes

PAPER manual iScience 2026 In vitro study Effect: harm Evidence: Low

Read original paper → Evidence Lab

Abstract

Schwann cells (SCs) are glial cells of the peripheral nervous system with functional plasticity in physio-pathological conditions, such as injury and oncotransformation. Interestingly, human SCs seem to develop, mature, and respond differently to other species to environmental challenges. Recently, concerns have been raised about the expansion of environmental electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and the increasing incidence of vestibular schwannoma (VS). We previously demonstrated that SCs respond to EMF by acquiring a state prone to oncotransformation. However, the biodependence of such transformation on the species (rodents versus humans) deserves clarification. Here, we obtained and characterized human SCs, showing that EMF affects proliferation, migration, and transcriptomic profile. The expression of motility proteins increased, while that of cell-to-cell adhesion proteins decreased. The functional clustering of genes differentially expressed matched those involved in hearing loss. In summary, we provide insights into the effects of chronic EMF on human SCs, highlighting its potential role in VS onset.

AI evidence extraction

At a glance

Study type

In vitro study

Effect direction

harm

Population

Human Schwann cells

Sample size

—

Exposure

unknown other · chronic

Evidence strength

Low

Confidence: 88% · Peer-reviewed: yes

Main findings

In human Schwann cells, chronic EMF exposure affected proliferation, migration, and transcriptomic profile. Motility protein expression increased, cell-to-cell adhesion protein expression decreased, and differentially expressed genes clustered in pathways related to hearing loss.

Outcomes measured

Cell proliferation
Cell migration/motility
Transcriptomic profile
Expression of motility proteins
Expression of cell-to-cell adhesion proteins
Differentially expressed genes related to hearing loss

Limitations

In vitro study
Exposure parameters were not specified in the abstract
Sample size was not stated
The abstract describes potential relevance to vestibular schwannoma onset but does not demonstrate clinical disease in humans

View raw extracted JSON

{
    "study_type": "in_vitro",
    "exposure": {
        "band": "unknown",
        "source": "other",
        "frequency_mhz": null,
        "sar_wkg": null,
        "duration": "chronic"
    },
    "population": "Human Schwann cells",
    "sample_size": null,
    "outcomes": [
        "Cell proliferation",
        "Cell migration/motility",
        "Transcriptomic profile",
        "Expression of motility proteins",
        "Expression of cell-to-cell adhesion proteins",
        "Differentially expressed genes related to hearing loss"
    ],
    "main_findings": "In human Schwann cells, chronic EMF exposure affected proliferation, migration, and transcriptomic profile. Motility protein expression increased, cell-to-cell adhesion protein expression decreased, and differentially expressed genes clustered in pathways related to hearing loss.",
    "effect_direction": "harm",
    "limitations": [
        "In vitro study",
        "Exposure parameters were not specified in the abstract",
        "Sample size was not stated",
        "The abstract describes potential relevance to vestibular schwannoma onset but does not demonstrate clinical disease in humans"
    ],
    "evidence_strength": "low",
    "confidence": 0.88000000000000000444089209850062616169452667236328125,
    "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
    "keywords": [
        "electromagnetic fields",
        "EMF",
        "human Schwann cells",
        "cell motility",
        "cell proliferation",
        "transcriptomics",
        "hearing loss",
        "vestibular schwannoma",
        "oncotransformation"
    ],
    "suggested_hubs": []
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract/metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice.

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