On the modeling and analysis of the RF exposure on biological systems: A potential treatment strategy for neurodegenerative diseases

Abstract

Mobile communication devices, body area networks, monitoring systems, and diagnostic and therapeutic tools are based on radio frequency emissions, raising the public concern on the possible negative effects on the human health. The future is also oriented towards the use of in-body (nano) sensors for medical applications. Biological alterations caused by non-thermal induced effects have currently been under investigation and experimental results on long-term effects are often discordant. To this end, recent experiments on transgenic Alzheimer mice revealed a progressive regression of the neurodegenerative disease after controlled exposure to mobile phone radiations. Therefore, the importance of understanding the RF-induced effects on the neuronal activity is twofold. Future wireless devices can be designed minimizing unhealthy effects whereas novel RF-based diagnostic and treatment devices for neurodegenerative diseases can be envisaged (in-body micro and nano-sensors and non-invasive techniques). In this paper, we propose an alternative approach in the investigation of such hidden biological mechanisms, where traditional concepts from radio communications are applied to neuroscience. The interaction of RF sources with the neuronal activity is the key point as well as the information exchanged in neuronal networks and the small-world topology of such network, heavily altered in Alzheimer patients.