WEB-028Original text reviewed
60 GHz: gene expression, DNA folding and collagen deposition
The reported finding
255 differentially expressed genes (FDR <0.05), increased collagen deposition and altered G-quadruplex/i-motif DNA structures. No increase in γH2AX DNA-damage signal.
Reading it carefully
Two biological RNA-sequencing replicates. High cumulative exposure; cells scanned at room temperature. Negligible measured bulk heating does not resolve every local transient temperature change. DNA folding is not DNA breakage.
Inside the study
Technology connection
60 GHz-region or adjacent-band biology; not an experiment with a WiGig device and not evidence of an oxygen-deprivation mechanism.
Publication type
Original journal research
Exposure conditions
60 GHz; spatial-average 2.6 mW/cm²; raster scanning 5 h/day for 2 or 4 days (46.8 J/cm²/day).
Design & controls
Primary human dermal fibroblasts; sham scanning and TGF-β comparator; RNA sequencing, microscopy and temperature measurements/modelling.
Statistics
See the original results; effect sizes were not independently recalculated.
Related research & shared cohorts
Shares researchers with the 60 GHz sensory-neuron programme; different experiments.
The protection question raised
Which exposure conditions reproduce this finding, and what would establish its relevance beyond the experimental model?
Source verification
Original methods/results and interpretation reviewed; raw data and supplements were not independently audited.
Where to find the result
Original methods and results
Editorial notices
Linked Europe PMC/PubMed notice fields checked 21 October 2026; no correction/retraction surfaced for this record. Publisher/citation screening is not exhaustive.
Funding
Australian Research Council; National Health and Medical Research Council. See original grant details.
Conflicts of interest
Authors report no competing interests/conflicts; declaration checked, not independently audited.
Original publication
Nicholas B Lawler; Cameron W Evans; Sergii Romanenko; Nutan Chaudhari; Mark Fear; Fiona Wood; Nicole M Smith; Vincent P Wallace; K Swaminathan Iyer. Millimeter waves alter DNA secondary structures and modulate the transcriptome in human fibroblasts. Biomedical optics express. 2022. doi:10.1364/boe.458478.