Modeling cell dynamics under mobile phone radiation.

Perturbations by pulse-modulated microwave radiation from GSM mobile phones on neuron cell membrane gating and calcium oscillations have been suggested as a possible mechanism underlying activation of brain states and electroencephalographic epiphenomena. As the employ of UMTS phones seems to reveal other symptoms, a unified phenomenological framework is needed. In order to explain possible effects of mobile phone radiation on cell oscillations, GSM and UMTS low-frequency envelopes have been detected, recorded and used as input in cell models. Dynamical systems endowed with contiguous regular and chaotic regimes suitable to produce stochastic resonance can both account for the perturbation of the neuro-electrical activity and even for the low intensity of the signal perceived by high sensitive subjects. Neuron models of this kind can be employed as a reductionist hint for the mentioned phenomenology. The Hindmarsh-Rose model exhibits frequency enhancement and regularization phenomena induced by weak GSM and UMTS. More realistic simulations of cell membrane gating and calcium oscillations have been performed with the help of an adaptation of the Chay-Keizer dynamical system. This scheme can explain the suspected subjective sensitivity to mobile phone signals under the thermal threshold, in terms of cell calcium regularity mechanisms. Concerning the two kinds of emission, the stronger occupation of the ELF band of last generation UMTS phones is compensated by lower power emitted.

Alzheimer's disease: pathophysiological implications of measurement of plasma cortisol, plasma dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and lymphocytic corticosteroid receptors.

Alzheimer's disease is often characterized by an increase in plasma cortisol without clinical evidence of hypercorticism. Twenty-three consecutive patients with Alzheimer's disease and 23 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were studied by measuring plasma cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) (by enzyme immunoassay), the number of type I and type II corticosteroid receptors in mononuclear leukocytes (by radio-receptor-assay), and the lymphocyte subpopulations (by cytofluorimetry). Results are expressed in terms of median and range. In Alzheimer's disease, plasma cortisol was higher than in controls (median 0.74, range 0.47-1.21 vs 0.47, 0.36-0.77 mmol/L; p < 0.001). Plasma DHEAS, the DHEAS/cortisol ratio, and the number of type II corticosteroid receptors were significantly lower in AD than in controls (DHEAS: median 1.81, range 0.21-3.69 vs 3.51, 1.35-9.07 micromol/L; DHEAS/ cortisol: 2.04, range 0.3-5.8 vs 6.8, range 2.7-24 and type II receptors: 1219, 1000-2700 vs 1950, 1035- 2750 receptors per cell; p < 0.001). No correlation was found between the hormonal parameters, age, and mini-mental test score. These data support the hypothesis of a dysregulation of the adrenal pituitary axis in Alzheimer's disease, which is probably the consequence of damage to target tissues by corticosteroids.