News and events

NextGEM’s presence at BioEM2023

In a striking display of commitment to advancing the field of bioelectromagnetics, Project NextGEM made waves at BioEM2023, the world’s premier conference in this domain. Held from June 19th to June 23rd in the historic city of Oxford, UK, this year’s event witnessed Project NextGEM’s active participation and impactful contributions.

European Commission Funding and EMF Research

The conference began on a high note with Rita Araujo from the DG Research & Innovation of the European Commission taking the stage. She presented the EC-funded research on electromagnetic fields (EMF) and health, a critical area where NextGEM plays a pivotal role as part of the Research Cluster on EMF CLUE-H. This presentation set the stage for highlighting the importance and relevance of our project on the global stage.

Leadership in Key Sessions

Two key members of the NextGEM team, Mats-Olof Mattsson and Myrtill Simkó, assumed the role of session chairs, underlining their expertise in the “in-vivo” session. Their involvement showcased NextGEM’s leadership within the bioelectromagnetics community.

Genotoxicity Research Insights

Maria Rosaria Scarfi delivered a thought-provoking presentation during the conference, sharing a systematic review of the evidence regarding the genotoxicity of radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields from in vitro studies on mammalian cells. Chaired by Olga Zeni, this presentation contributed significantly to ongoing discussions on the effects of RF electromagnetic fields on biological systems.

Poster Presentations: A Visual Impact

The NextGEM project team made a strong visual impact with the presentation of four posters. These visually engaging displays served as a platform to communicate their groundbreaking research findings and initiate stimulating discussions among fellow conference attendees.

Shaping the WHO RF EMF Health Risk Assessment

Maria Rosaria Scarfi also assumed the role of session chair for the “Reviewing for the WHO RF EMF Health Risk Assessment” session, with a focus on the requirements for studies to be informative. This underscores NextGEM’s integral role in informing health risk assessments related to RF EMF exposure, particularly in vitro studies.

Numerical Dosimetry Expertise

Nikolaos Petroulakis, showcased his expertise by co-chairing a session on numerical dosimetry. This highlighted NextGEM’s dedication to understanding and modeling electromagnetic field exposure, a vital aspect of bioelectromagnetics research.

Supporting Emerging Talent

Olga Zeni’s participation in the closing ceremony and her involvement in student awards demonstrated NextGEM’s commitment to nurturing the next generation of bioelectromagnetics researchers.

Announcing BioEM2024 in Chania, Crete, Greece

As the coordinator of Project NextGEM and chair of the local organizing committee for the next BioEM conference, Nikolaos Petroulakis, made an exciting announcement. BioEM2024 is scheduled to take place from June 16th to June 21st, 2024, in the picturesque city of Chania, Crete, Greece. This forthcoming event promises to be a significant gathering for the bioelectromagnetics community.

 

In conclusion, BioEM2023 was a resounding success for Project NextGEM, with its substantial contributions leaving a lasting impact on the field of bioelectromagnetics. The team’s dedication to advancing research and fostering collaboration was palpable throughout the conference, setting the stage for even greater achievements in the future.

Meet our partner – Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM)

The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) (link) works towards a healthy population living in a sustainable, safe and healthy environment. RIVM pursues those goals based on independent scientific research. Working with our commissioning clients, we identify the research that is needed and conduct studies accordingly. We provide advice to the government, to professionals and to members of the public, and share our knowledge. RIVM works on preventing and controlling infectious diseases, good healthcare and a healthy lifestyle, and living in a safe, clean environment. Within this last task, we monitor radio-frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) and are active in the RF-EMF exposure field of research. Even though RIVM is owned by the Dutch government, we are independent in the performance of its commissioned projects.

Among the research-specific groups in NextGEM, RIVM has more experience with communicating with stakeholders outside of science, such as authorities and citizens. In the Netherlands (and many other places across the world), 5G is a topic that generates a wide range of opinions. In the Netherlands, RIVM is active in the knowledge platform for electromagnetic fields (link), which informs the population about pressing questions and the current state of research. RIVM will use this expertise to help generate practical guidelines for citizens and authorities based on the research done in NextGEM. Additionally, RIVM is a knowledge and research institute working on many work packages in NextGEM, such as developing new measurement devices for 5G, experiments on biological and health-related effects of EMFs, and case studies assessing the risks and impacts of 5G.

NextGEM featured in Revista Española de Salud Pública

Our project has been featured in a review in the Revista Española de Salud Pública on Synthesis of the Report Trends in the incidence of brain cancer in Spain between 1985 and 2015 and its possible relationship with the use of mobile phones.

Spanish:

https://www.sanidad.gob.es/biblioPublic/publicaciones/recursos_propios/resp/revista_cdrom/VOL97/RESENAS_BIBLUOGRAFICAS/RS97C_202303026es.pdf

English:

https://www.sanidad.gob.es/biblioPublic/publicaciones/recursos_propios/resp/revista_cdrom/VOL97/RESENAS_BIBLUOGRAFICAS/RS97C_202303026.pdf

Participation of NextGEM at the upcoming BioEM 2023 conference

The NextGEM project will participate in BioEM, the world’s largest and most significant bioelectromagnetics conference attracting academic and industrial participants at all career stages from all over the world.

It is a great opportunity for the project to be part of the forum for the exchange of scientific achievements, demonstrating state-of-the-art research, identifying gaps in science and establishing and strengthening our liaison with professional networks.

The conference will take place between the 18th and 2rd of June 2023 at Oxford, UK.

Presentation of the paper “Designing NIKH: the NextGEM Innovation and Knowledge Hub to Access Next Generation Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Field (EMF) Exposure and Health Data” in the IEEE CSCN 2022 

The paper “Designing NIKH: the NextGEM Innovation and Knowledge Hub to Access Next Generation Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Field (EMF) Exposure and Health Data” was presented by the Coordinator of the NextGEM project, Nikolaos Petroulakis (ICS-FORTH) in the IEEE CSCN 2022 at Thessaloniki, on the 28th of November 2022.