Pass the remote control… mice???
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Electromagnetic fields, or EMFs, are invisible energy fields created by flowing electricity. From TV remotes to MRI machines, EMFs have many uses! But can EMFs turn on… a gene?!
Junyeop Kim and team at Dongguk University in Korea found a way!
They exposed mice to EMFs for two days to find genes sensitive to remote activation. AND… they found a DNA sequence that responds to EMFs!
In mice with depression, they added this sequence to a gene that controls serotonin production. Exposing them to EMFs INCREASED serotonin and REDUCED depressive behavior!
So tune in, drop out, and turn on!
Kim, J., Hwang, Y., Kim, S., Kwon, D., Park, J., Cho, B., An, S., Kang, S., Kim, Y., Kim, S., Lengner, C. J., Kim, S., Kwon, Y., Sung, J.-S., & Kim, J. (2026). Electromagnetic field-inducible in vivo gene switch for remote spatiotemporal control of gene expression. Cell. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2026.03.029