The increasing use of mobile phones may have a number of physiological and psychological effects on human health. Many animal and human studies have reported various effects on the central nervous system and cognitive performance from of exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) emitted by mobile phones. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of mobile phones on the morphology of the human brain and on cognitive performance using stereological and spectroscopic methods and neurocognitive tests. Sixty healthy female medical school students aged 18-25 years were divided into a low exposure group (30 subjects, 90 min daily use by the head). Magnetic resonance images (MRI) of the brain analysed on OsiriX 3.2.1 workstation. Neuropsychological tests were performed for each subject. In addition, three dominant specific metabolites were analysed, choline at 3.21 ppm, creatine at 3.04 ppm and N-acetyl aspartate at 2.02 ppm. Analysis of the spectroscopic results revealed no significant difference in specific metabolites between the groups (p > 0.05). There was also no significant difference in terms of hippocampal volume between the groups (p > 0.05). In contrast, the results of the stroop and digit span (backward) neurocognitive tests of high exposure group for evaluating attention were significantly poorer from low exposure group (p < 0.05). Based on these results, we conclude that a lack of attention and concentration may occur in subjects who talk on mobile phones for longer times, compared to those who use phones relatively less.

Because of increased use of cell phones, the purpose of this study was to investigation of the oxidative damage caused by electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted by cell phones and histological and morphometrical determination of the possible protective role of folic acid (FA) in preventing the detrimental effects of EMR on the kidney. Twenty-four adult male Wistar albino rats were divided into control (Cont), EMR, EMR + FA and FA groups, each containing six rats. The EMR and EMR + FA groups were exposed to EMR for 60 min a day over a period of 21 days, while no EMR exposure was applied to the Cont and FA groups. The source of the EMR was an EMR device which emits a digital signal producing 900-MHz frequency radiation. The generator connected to a one-monopole antenna was used in this study and the rats were placed in the plexiglass restrainer at an equal distance from the monopole antenna. Following the experimental period, and after tissue processing, a physical disector-Cavalieri method combination was applied to the sections. The mean volume of the cortex, medulla, proximal and distal tubules increased significantly in the EMR groups compared to the Cont group (p < 0.01). Contrarily, the total number of glomeruli in the EMR group decreased compared to the Cont group (p < 0.01). The protective effects of FA was observed in the kidney (p < 0.05). In conclusion, the 900-MHz EMR leads to kidney damage. FA may exhibit a protective effect against the adverse effects of EMR exposure in terms of the total number of glomeruli.

The development of animal models to study cell death in the brain is a delicate task. One of the models, that was discovered in the late eighties, is the induction of neurodegeneration through glucocorticoid withdrawal by adrenalectomy in albino rats. Such a model is one of the few noninvasive models for studying neurodegeneration. In the present study, using stereological technique and ultrastructural examination, we aimed to investigate the impact of short-term adrenalectomy (2 weeks) on different hippocampal neuronal populations in Wistar rats. In addition, the underlying mechanism(s) of degeneration in these neurons were investigated by measuring the levels of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and β-nerve growth factor (β-NGF). Moreover, we examined whether the biochemical and histological changes in the hippocampus, after short-term adrenalectomy, have an impact on the cognitive behavior of Wistar rats. Stereological counting in the hippocampus revealed significant neuronal deaths in the dentate gyrus and CA4/CA3, but not in the CA2 and CA1 areas, 7 and 14 days post adrenalectomy. The ultrastructural examinations revealed degenerated and degenerating neurons in the dentate, as well as CA4, and CA3 areas, over the course of 3, 7 and 14 days. The levels of IGF-1 were significantly decreased in the hippocampus of ADX rats 24 h post adrenalectomy, and lasted over the course of two weeks. However, β-NGF was not affected in rats. Using a passive avoidance task, we found a cognitive deficit in the ADX compared to the SHAM operated rats over time (3, 7, and 14 days). In conclusion, both granule and pyramidal cells were degenerated in the hippocampus following short-term adrenalectomy. The early depletion of IGF-1 might play a role in hippocampal neuronal degeneration. Consequently, the loss of the hippocampal neurons after adrenalectomy leads to cognitive deficits.

Amaç: Tüm dünyayı etkisi altına alan koronavirüs salgını sebebiyle aniden geçilen uzaktan eğitim sisteminin sağlık alanında eğitim alan öğrenciler tarafından değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Uygulamalı eğitimin önemli bir yer tuttuğu Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal Üniversitesi Diş Hekimliği Fakültesi, Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi, Tıp Fakültesi ve Sağlık Meslek Yüksekokulu’nda öğrenim gören 505 öğrenci tarafından cevaplandırılan 43 soruluk anket çalışması faktör analizi ile incelendi. Sosyo-demografik veriler sayı ve yüzde olarak ifade edildi. Faktörlerin sosyodemografik değişkenlere göre değerlendirilmesinde cinsiyet için Mann-Whitney U; eğitim, okul ve uzaktan eğitime erişim şekli için ise Kruskal-Wallis testleri kullanıldı. Bulgular: Anket çalışmasına 357 (%70,69) kadın, 148 (%29,31) erkek öğrenci katıldı. Bu kapsamda; öğrencilerin cinsiyetleri ile mesleki kaygı (p=0,030) ve online ders takibi (p=0,001) bakımından anlamlı farklılıklar bulundu. Ek olarak eğitim düzeyine göre sistemik altyapı (p=0,007) ve çevrimiçi ders takibi (p=0,029) açısından anlamlı farklılıklar görülmüştür. Öğrencilerin okudukları okul ile mesleki kaygı arasında ise anlamlılık gözlenmedi (p=0,101). Sonuç: Öğrencilerin uzaktan eğitime bakışları olumlu olmakla birlikte, memnuniyetlerini etkileyen faktörler değişmektedir. Her ne kadar pandemi koşullarında uzaktan eğitim iyi bir bir altenatif olarak düşünülse de uygulamalı dersler açısından öğrenciler yüz yüze eğitimi tercih etmektedirler.