Influence of electromagnetic fields on the swimming behavior of ciliates

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Influence of electromagnetic fields on the swimming behavior of ciliates

Sample object: Paramecium biaurelia, Loxodes striatus, Tetrahymena thermophila

Tetrahymena thermophila

Effects of electromagnetic fields on the mean swimming velocity and the linearity of cell tracks.

Reference:
Hemmersbach, R., Becker, E., Stockem W., "Influence of extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields on the swimming behavior of ciliates." Bioelectromagnetics 18(1997): 491-498.

Abstract:
Different species of ciliates (Paramecium biaurelia, Loxodes striatus, Tetrahymena thermophila) have been taken as model systems to study the effects of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields (50 Hz, 0.5-2.0 mT) on the cellular level. A dose-dependent increase in the mean swimming velocity and a decrease in the linearity of cell tracks were observed in all wild-type cells. In contrast, field-exposure did not increase the number of directional turns of the Paramecium tetraurelia pawn mutant (d4-500r), which is characterized by defective Ca2+-channels. The described changes indicate a direct effect of low frequency electromagnetic fields on the transport mechanisms of the cell membrane for ions controlling the motile activity of cilia.