How might pulsed microwaves harm the brain? UW–Madison engineers lead the search for answers

An interdisciplinary, multi-institutional research initiative led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison will be the first program in the world to comprehensively investigate how pulsed microwaves might injure the brain.

PANTHER, which focuses on understanding, detecting and preventing traumatic brain injuries, received $10 million in additional funding from the U.S. Office of Naval Research to conduct the research. Since its inception in 2017, PANTHER has received more than $50 million in support from the Office of Naval Research.

Since 2016, more than 150 U.S. personnel serving in countries such as Russia, China, Cuba and Austria have reported a sudden onset of concussion-like symptoms such as severe headaches, dizziness and nausea. These cases are known as "anomalous health incidents."

The National Academy of Sciences and a panel assembled by the U.S. intelligence community have analyzed the cases. Both groups concluded that the phenomenon is plausibly explained by exposure to directed, pulsed radio-frequency energy such as microwaves.

"However, we don't really know what happens to the brain when it's exposed to pulsed microwaves," says Christian Franck, a professor of mechanical engineering at UW-Madison and PANTHER director. "Do pulsed microwaves have a physical effect, such as causing stretching, deforming or heating of the brain tissue? And at what power level are these microwaves potentially harmful to the brain? There are a lot of unanswered questions."

PANTHER aims to provide answers to those questions and more, establishing a fundamental scientific understanding of how pulsed microwaves interact with the brain and may injure it. UW-Madison engineers will leverage cutting-edge research techniques to investigate changes-spanning the molecular level to the animal level-that occur in the brain due to pulsed microwave exposure.

Franck says this work will lay the foundation for clinical diagnosis, potential treatments, and effective strategies to prevent injury.

"PANTHER has a successful track record of making breakthroughs that shed light on how forces from blunt impacts and blast exposures interact with brain tissue to cause traumatic brain injuries," Franck says. "We're excited to expand our research to also address this important challenge of understanding the potential harm of pulsed microwave exposure."

Franck is the Bjorn Borgen Professor and H.I. Romnes Faculty Fellow.

Featured image: Illustration of brain neurons. Credit: iStock.