PRELIMINARY CLUES ABOUT ELECTRICAL FIELDS' IMPACT ON CELLS

February 4, 1994 -- Whether very weak electrical fields can affect model
membranes -- and by extension, whether electrical fields from power lines
can affect living cells -- may be clarified by on-going National Science
Foundation (NSF)-supported research at California's Stanford University. 
Electrical fields might affect the membranes that surround cells, which
could trigger them to function in an abnormal way, according to a
published paper in Science magazine (February 4, 1994) by Stanford
researcher Harden McConnell.

The membranes that surround living cells function like two-dimensional
fluids; and the physical properties of these fluids are subject to strict
biological control in normal cells.  McConnell and his collaborators
employed a technique used for many years to study the physical properties
of the components of cell membranes -- a thin film of membrane lipids
spread on an air-water interface.  They showed that the physical
properties of this thin lipid membrane can be strongly disrupted by a
non-uniform electrical field.

Under conditions they believe may be present in living cell membranes, they
have found that a weak electrical field can produce a large change in
lipid composition. A disruption in lipid composition can lead to
inappropriate cell functioning.  For example, a cell might be triggered to
kill innocent bystander cells, similar to the inappropriate triggering of
killer cells by small particles of asbestos.  Work is now underway at
Stanford to further test these speculations. McConnell's research is
supported by NSF's molecular biophysics program.

The National Science Foundation is an independent agency of the federal
government established in 1950 to promote and advance scientific progress
in the United States.  NSF accomplishes its mission primarily by
competitively awarding grants to educational institutions for research and
education in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

This and other information is available electronically on STIS, NSF's
Science and Technology Information System.  For more information about
STIS contact the Publications Section at (703) 306-1130 and request the
"STIS Flyer," NSF Publication #91-10, or send an E-mail message to
stisinfo@nsf.gov (INTERNET) or stisinfo@NSF (BITNET).

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