The Polymerase Chain Reaction/Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphisms (PCR/RFLPs) technique was selected as a biomarker to evaluate the effect of exposure to electromagnetic speculum radiation in three groups of albino rats (Rattus rattus) exposed to electromagnetic spectrum radiation (10,16 and 20 pulses/day; three days a week for three weeks). A fourth group of rats was kept as untreated control. The primary DNA damage was evaluated by monitoring the fragmentation of mitochondrial NADH ubiquinone oxidoreductase subunit gene in the hepatocytes. The inter-individual differences in gene damage between exposed subjects were compared with the mitochondrial NADH ubiquinone oxidoreductase subunit gene of the unexposed rat. It was found that rats which were exposed to different doses of electromagnetic spectrum radiation showed highly significant increases in levels of gene damage compared with controls. However, influences of the different doses absorbed on the levels of' DNA damage, assessed by use of the PCP/RFIPs. might be excluded in the majority of subjects. A new diagnostic hypothesis for detecting the effect of electromagnetic spectrum on the liver of albino rats is proposed based on the analysis of mitochondrial NADH ubiquinone oxidoreductase subunit gene/RFLP by using AflII, ApaI, PstI, HaeII, DsaI, SspBI and DraIII restriction endonucleases. The results obtained have confirmed the usefulness of the PCR/RFLPs as an additional complement to the standard biodosimetric methods |
