Lipid vesicles: a probe for probing the interaction of electromagnetic fields and biosystems

When considering the action of electromagnetic fields (EMF) on a biological system, the cell membrane is considered the major target for the interaction. In order to reduce the biological complexity of this system and, as a consequence, improve the research on specific effects induced by exposure to EMF, we suggest the use of membrane model systems so that physical, biochemical, and physiological processes may be isolated and analyzed in molecular terms. Interactions can take place between these model systems and electromagnetic fields both at low and high frequencies. Observations reported by our group indicate that exposures at 7 Hz (ELF), 2.45 GHz, 53.37 GHz and 130 GHz can influence lipid membrane function of different type of lipid vesicles. Specifically, we used cationic liposomes loading Carbonic Anhydrase, proteoliposomes with reconstituted connexin32 hemi-channel and giant vesicles. In all cases exposures to the field induced effects related to charged and dipolar residues located at the lipid membrane surface.