Evidence mapPaperPMID 42346148Full record

ArticleCells2026

Microwave Radiation Remodels Hippocampal Astrocytes Subpopulations and Intercellular Communication at Single-Cell Resolution.

Chenxu Chang, Zhihua Feng, Yumeng Ye, Zhengtao Xu, Xiaoxu Kong, Ying Liu, Xuelong Zhao, Yanhui Hao, Hongyan Zuo, Yang Li

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cells, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
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0citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

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0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Chenxu ChangBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Zhihua FengBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Yumeng YeBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Zhengtao XuBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Xiaoxu KongBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Ying LiuBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Xuelong ZhaoBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Yanhui HaoBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
Hongyan ZuoBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.ORCID 0000-0002-4911-1575
Yang LiBeijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The potential health hazards caused by microwave exposure have attracted increasing attention. Microwave radiation has been reported to induce oxidative stress in neural tissues, which is considered one of the primary mechanisms underlying its adverse effects on central nervous system function. The hippocampus is sensitive to microwave radiation, whereas underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms remain incompletely understood. In this study, microwave-exposed mice exhibited significantly impaired performance in the Go/No-go, Y-maze, and novel object recognition tests at 6 h and 7 days post-exposure, indicating deficits in hippocampus-dependent working memory. Single-cell RNA sequencing of hippocampal tissues from control and microwave-exposed mice yielded 94,088 high-quality cells across eight major cell types. Astrocyte sub-clustering identified five transcriptionally distinct subpopulations, with Astrocyte_S100a6 and Astrocyte_Son proportions increased and Astrocyte_Serpinf1 decreased in the radiation group. Analysis of astrocyte transcriptional state transitions showed microwave-exposed astrocytes were preferentially distributed toward terminal reactive states with depletion at early homeostatic nodes. Cell-cell communication analysis revealed increased total interactions and interaction strength following radiation. Astrocyte outgoing signaling was increased for pathways associated with vascular remodeling, phagocytic regulation, and neuroinflammation, while pathways related to trophic support were decreased. Incoming signaling showed increased activity in pathways linked to phagocytic recruitment and inflammatory mediation. Taken together, these findings indicate that microwave exposure is associated with hippocampus-dependent working memory deficits accompanied by transcriptional remodeling of astrocyte subpopulation composition, directional astrocyte state transitions toward reactive phenotypes, and broad alterations in astrocyte-centered intercellular communication, providing a cellular and molecular framework for understanding astrocyte involvement in microwave radiation-associated hippocampal dysfunction.

Indexed as

AstrocytesCell CommunicationHippocampusMicrowavesSingle-Cell AnalysisAnimalsMaleMiceMice, Inbred C57BLastrocytecognitive impairmenthippocampusmicrowave radiationsingle-cell RNA sequencing

Identifiers

PMID42346148
PMCPMC13296900

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.