Effect of Magnetic Fields on Drug Induced Contractility and Mortality in Spirostomum

Possibilities for installation oflarge scale magnetic ~vices for energy production have stimulated inquiries Blo the biological effects of magnetic fields [1,2]. 'ecently magnetic fields have been reported by .. eking et al. [3] to influence the force developed ring contraction of isolated frog sartorius muscle. ey observed that in homogeneous magnetic fields to 5 T, the amplitude of isometric force develop­ ent in isolated skeletal muscle is reduced by about o. The authors speculate, following Dudoladov and incher [4], that the s"tructural state of intracellular ter adjacent to protein or membrane surfaces can altered by an external magnetic field. We have investigated the effects of homogeneous agnetic fields on the mechanism of cellular contrac­ n by studying the contraction frequency in cells Uowing chemical stimulation with and without an plied magnetic field. In this study we used the ntractile ciliate spirostomum ambiguum (Ward's ological Supply, Rochester, Ny), inducing contrac­ fiS with 10 ,uM of the thiol reagent 2,2'-dipyridyl-