Background/aims: Semicircular lipoatrophy (SL) is an idiopathic condition characterized by atrophy of subcutaneous fatty tissue. Although several studies have suggested a possible association between SL and occupational exposure to power frequency magnetic fields (MF), no mechanism has been proposed so far that explains an influence of these fields on adipogenesis.
Methods: The study investigates the effects of a 50 Hz, 100 µT MF on the adipogenesis of stem cells isolated from human adipose tissue (ADSC). Cells were plated in Petri dishes and either exposed intermittently to the field for 42 hours or sham-exposed.
Results: Field exposure significantly reduced lipid accumulation within the cells, revealed in Oil Red O stained samples by spectrophotometry and colorimetry. Early cell passages were particularly sensitive to the effect: 30.40 ± 5.77% and 47.96 ± 12.47% below controls in the spectrophotometric and colorimetric assays, respectively. Such antiadipogenic effect was accompanied by significant changes in the expression of key effectors/regulators of early adipogenesis: PPARx03B3;, p-ERK1/2 and Sox9, indicating that at least the ERK/PPARx03B3; signaling pathway could be involved in the effect.
Conclusions: These results constitute an experimental support to the hypothesis that power frequency MF can be one of the factors involved in the etiology of SL.
© 2015 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.