Effects of extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields on the susceptibility and resistance mechanisms of multi-drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of low-frequency electromagnetic fields (LF-EMFs = 0.5 MHz) on the phenotypic and genotypic levels concerning the antibiotic resistance, antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) genes, and resistance mechanisms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa). In this study, the bacterial isolates were exposed to 0.5 MHz and then inoculated to a new medium for the assessment of their antibiotic sensitivity. The results showed that there were statistically significant changes in the antibiotic sensitivity upon exposure to extremely low-frequency waves along with significant changes in the antimicrobial genes and resistance mechanisms. We conclude that extremely LF-EMFs appeared to be effective in changing the antibiotic sensitivity and could be considered a future promising method for controlling bacterial resistance.