The evaluation of the effects of long-term mobile phone use on the testicular histopathology

Purpose: In this study, we aimed to investigate whether the low-density electromagnetic waves emitted by a mobile phone cause any histopathological and ultrastructural changes on rat testis.Method and Materials: Male Wistar rats(Kyoto 200-300 g) were used in this study. The rats were classified into two groups, the control group and the group which is exposed to electromagnetic field. Two mobile phones which had 1,58 SAR value were placed into the cages in which there were 15 rats from the control group and four mobile phones which had 1,58 SAR value were placed into the cages in which there were 30 rats of the study group. The mobile phones which were placed into the cages of the rats of the study group were active seven days of the week. The rats were sacrificed under isoflorane anesthesia and their testes were taken out at the end of the third month. The testes were weighed with delicate scales. One half of each rat?s testes was reserved for histopathological examination and the other half of each rat?s testes was reserved for electron microscopy examination. Each cross-section reserved for histopathological examination 50 seminiferous tubules was scored randomly according to Johnsen scoring system. Ten seminiferous tubular diameters were measured randomly in each cross-section. The seminiferous tubular diameters and the weights of testes were compared with non-parametric Mann Whitney U test. A chi-square test was used to determine whether the Johnsen tissue scores are dispersed similarly in the control and the study groups or not.Findings: No statistically significant difference was found in the histopathological examination of testicular weights, seminiferous tubular diameters and Johnsen tissue scores of the groups which were exposed to electromagnetic field and which were not exposed to electromagnetic field. During the electron microscopy examination, however, increases in the thickness of membrane propria and the amount of collagen fiber and an expansion in capillary vessels were observed in the experimental group. Some other remarkable findings were the extensive vacuolization in the cytoplasms of Sertoli cells, the increase in the electron dense structures and the existence of large lipid droplets.Result: While no statistically significant difference was found about the histopathological examination of testicular weights, seminiferous tubular diameters and Johnsen tissue scores of the rats which were exposed to long-term electromagnetic field, increases in the thickness of membrane propria and the amount of collagen fiber and an expansion in capillary vessels, extensive vacuolization in the cytoplasms of Sertoli cells were determined during the ultrastructural examination. Longer studies are needed to determine the effects of the changes observed in the ultrastructural examination in order to be clinically significant.Key Words: Mobile cellular phone, rat testes, electromagnetic field