Cross-sectional survey studies in different countries have reported that EHS subjects experience non-specific subjective symptoms (e.g., headache, dizziness, fatigue, sleep disorder) associated with EMF exposure: 1.5% in Sweden [ 3], 3.2% in California [ 4], and 5% in Switzerland [ 5].
Concerning the non-specific information, mutated subjects did not differ from non-mutated ones (P=0.11) but a slightly higher level of specific knowledge characterized the mutated individuals (8.3±1.2 versus 8.0±1.1 for non-mutated ones, P=0.018).
The inclusion criteria were men and women, aged 18-85 years, with (25 subjects) or without (15 subjects) non-specific LBP problems (see Table 2), while the exclusion criteria were neurological or rheumatologic disorders, acute pain in the hip and leg, diabetes and cancer, and inability to speak and understand Danish.
210 subjects, 108 patients with non-specific LBP and 102 control subjects without back pain were included in the study.
Transfected TEC were grown in Lab-Tek chambers, washed in PBS and fixed absolute ethanol at room temperature for 10 min. Samples were incubated with BSA 1% to block non-specific sites; being then subjected to the anti-CD49f monoclonal antibody (1 100) (Santa Cruz Co., CA, USA) for 45 min at room temperature.
This may be achieved by collecting samples from easily obtainable biological material in order to assess the total individual exposure to non-specific substances with which subjects come in contact through different routes (lung, skin and gastrointestinal tract) and sources (air, diet, lifestyle or occupation) [ 11].
Figure 2 shows that after a 48-hour incubation, the cell survival rate was significantly lower in retinal cells grown in the presence of sera from patients with PR (62.5%; p < 0.0001) and AR (68.3%; p = 0.0003) than retinal cells grown in the presence of non-specific sera from control subjects (86.5%).
Thus, the final study population consisted of 619 patients with chronic non-specific abdominal complaints, with 291 subjects with data available from both patients and GP ("responders") and 328 subjects with data available from GP only ("non-responders").
In a series of experiments we reveal this measurement strategy is subject to non-specific interference by constituents present in oral fluids.
This suggests that these measurements are not subject to non-specific modulation by routine intensive care processes.
Therefore, it is crucial to check tissue specificity in each strain regularly by crossing it with a reporter mouse to ensure that one's specific strain is not subject to non-specific effects like those found by Fosang and colleagues.
