Effect of microwave radiation on permeability of liposomes. Evidence against non-thermal leakage

• The effect of 2.45 GHz microwave radiation on the permeability of unilamellar phosphatidylcholine liposomes has been studied. Leakage of 5(6)-calboxyfluorescein from the liposomes was measured using spectrofluorimetry after exposure to either microwaves or thermal heating for 5-20 min intervals. The exposure temperature, 37.6 +/- 0.5 degrees C, was well above the phase transition temperature of the lipid membrane. The microwave exposure did not result in any non-thermal increase in permeability above that produced by thermal heating. This study refutes the results reported by Saalman et al. [1] in which an increased liposome permeability due to microwave exposure was reported. The refined analysis in the present study shows that this increased liposome permeability was not a non-thermal microwave effect.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Biologi -- Biokemi och molekylärbiologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Biological Sciences -- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

microwave radiation

liposome

nonthermal effect

phase-transition

fluorescence

5(6)-carboxyfluorescein

temperature

membrane permeability

erythrocytes

efflux

Publication and Content Type

art (subject category)

ref (subject category)