Electromagnetic fields (EMFs), such as those found in overhead power lines or emanating from any electrical device or wiring, can have a biological effect on human cells.

This effect may contribute to the complex cellular process that leads to cancer, researchers from Michigan State University say.

James E. Trosko, a professor of pediatrics and human development states that " ... there is a biological effect of the energy imparted by extremely low frequency EMF (ELF-EMF) on living systems."

"Until now, the weight of the theoretical and experimental evidence has suggested that ELF-EMF did not have the ability to interact with genetic material to damage it, thereby causing mutations, which we know can lead to cancer," Trosko said.

In experiments on mice, researchers found that electromagnetic fields (EMFs) of 60 hertz and of strengths ranging from .05 to 10 gauss interfered with a chemically induced maturation process in mouse leukemia cells and allowed the cells to continue to proliferate.

• After four days of exposure, about 35 percent of the chemically treated cells that were exposed to ELF-EMF showed these effects.

• Researchers feel that ELF/EMF is not a tumor "initiator", but rather a potential tumor "promoter".

• According to Trosko, ELF-EMF "can turn them (genes) on and off at inappropriate times, causing these initiated cells to proliferate when normally they would just sit there quietly doing nothing."

"The bottom line is we showed there is a biological effect of EMF as measured by altering the expression of the hemoglobin-producing gene," he said.