biostudies-literatureBontempi BCNRSANRFrance Telecom R&DUniversity of BordeauxCOMOBIO project carried out within the RTRN research program (National Network for Research in Telecommunication)1954https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC11428239biostudies-literatureUnknown12(9)Over the last two decades, animal models have been used to evaluate the physiological and cognitive effects of mobile phone exposure. Here, we used a head-only exposure system in rats to determine whether exposure to 900 MHz GSM electromagnetic fields (EMFs) induces regional changes in neuronal activation as revealed by c-Fos imaging. In a first study, rats were exposed for 2 h to brain average specific absorption rates (BASARs) ranging from 0.5 to 6 W/kg. Changes in neuronal activation were found to be dose-dependent, with significant increases in c-Fos expression occurring at BASAR of 1 W/kg in prelimbic, infralimbic, frontal, and cingulate cortices. In a second study, rats were submitted to either a spatial working memory (WM) task in a radial maze or a spatial reference memory (RM) tasBiomedicinesEffects of Head-Only Exposure to 900 MHz GSM Electromagnetic Fields in Rats: Changes in Neuronal Activity as Revealed by c-Fos Imaging without Concomitant Cognitive Impairments.PMC11428239#ANR-10-CESA-002Jay TMDubreuil DLeveque PBontempi BEdeline JMfalseEffects of Head-Only Exposure to 900 MHz GSM Electromagnetic Fields in Rats: Changes in Neuronal Activity as Revealed by c-Fos Imaging without Concomitant Cognitive Impairments.Over the last two decades, animal models have been used to evaluate the physiological and cognitive effects of mobile phone exposure. Here, we used a head-only exposure system in rats to determine whether exposure to 900 MHz GSM electromagnetic fields (EMFs) induces regional changes in neuronal activation as revealed by c-Fos imaging. In a first study, rats were exposed for 2 h to brain average specific absorption rates (BASARs) ranging from 0.5 to 6 W/kg. Changes in neuronal activation were found to be dose-dependent, with significant increases in c-Fos expression occurring at BASAR of 1 W/kg in prelimbic, infralimbic, frontal, and cingulate cortices. In a second study, rats were submitted to either a spatial working memory (WM) task in a radial maze or a spatial reference memory (RM) tas2024-01-01T00:00:00Z2024 Aug2026-05-14T03:21:52.317Z2025-04-05T08:58:48.267ZS-EPMC114282393933546810.3390/biomedicines12091954