Effects of exposure to static magnetic fields (0.2-0.4 T) on the growth and adhesion of tumor cells

AIM: To investigate the effects of exposure to moderate-intensity static magnetic fields on the growth and adhesion of tumor cells. METHODS: After SMMC-7721, HepG2 and MCF-7 cells were exposed to static magnetic fields (0.2-0.4 T), cell growth was measured by methyl thiazol tetrazolium (MTT) assay, cell adhesion to fibronectin (FN) was detected by crystal violet staining, and cell cycle distribution was evaluated by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The effects of exposure to static magnetic fields on different cell types differed greatly. Moderate-intensity static magnetic field exposure did not affect cell growth, but reduced cell adhesion to FN (1.847 ± 0.342 vs 1.094 ± 0.33, P = 0.012) and decreased the percentage of cells in G₂/M phase (12.05 ± 1.14 vs 3.74 ± 0.87, P = 0.018) in SMMC-7721 cells. In MCF-7 cells, moderate-intensity static magnetic field exposure promoted cell growth, enhanced cell adhesion to FN (1.094 ± 0.076 vs 2.177 ± 0.474, P = 0.017) and increased the percentage of cells in G₂/M phase (4.42% ± 1.23% vs 12.04% ± 1.65%, P = 0.004). In HepG2 cells, cell growth was inhibited and cell cycle was blocked in G₂ phase (0.305 ± 0.076 vs 0.394 ± 0.089, P = 0.467) after exposure to moderate-intensity static magnetic fields though cell adhesion to FN was not significantly altered (1.90% ± 0.79% vs 0.24% ± 0.15%, P = 0.046). CONCLUSION: Exposure to moderate-intensity static magnetic fields (0.2-0.4 T) exerts different effects on cell growth, adhesion and cell cycle progression in different types of tumor cells.