Effects of Exposure to 5.8 GHz Electromagnetic Field on Micronucleus Formation, DNA Strand Breaks, and Heat Shock Protein Expressions in Cells Derived From Human Eye

In the near future, electrification will be introduced to heavy-dutyvehicles and passenger cars. However, the wireless power transfer (WPT) requires high energy levels, and the suitability of various types of WPT systems must be assessed. This paper describes a method for solving technical and safety issues associated with this technology. We exposed human corneal epithelial (HCE-T) cells derived from the human eye to 5.8-GHz electromagnetic fields for 24 h. We observed no statistically significant increase in micronucleus (MN) frequency in cells exposed to a 5.8-GHz field at 1 mW/cm
²
(the general public level in ICNIRP) relative to sham-exposed or incubator controls. Similarly, the DNA strand breaks, and the expression of heat shock protein (Hsp) Hsp27, Hsp70, and Hsp90α exhibited no statistically significant effects as a result of exposure. These results indicate that the exposure to 5.8-GHz electromagnetic fields at 1 mW/cm
²
for 24 h has little or no effect on micronucleus formation, DNA strand breaks, and Hsp expression in human eye cells.