Although the biological effect of non-ionizing (NIR) and ionizing radiation (IR) on plant seed potential is well documented, the mechanism of this impact is not clear yet. Since cell hydration, a fundamental parameter for determining cell function, is magneto-sensitive, in present work, a comparative study of extremely low frequencies (ELF) electromagnetic field (EMF), ELF EMF-modulated millimeter waves, and radiation exposure effects on winter wheat seeds water absorption and dry mass changes was performed. The seeds were incubated in physiological solutions (PS) for 2 and 72 h. In case of 2-h incubation, the water absorption determined by osmotic gradients between seeds and bathing medium, PS treated by all these factors leads to changes of water absorption. While in case of 72-h incubation (when germination processes are in active state) these impact had reversed character. The obtained data strongly suggest seeds bathing medium as a target through which the biological effects of NIR and IR are realized.

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The dysfunction of metabolic control of cell hydration is a common consequence of cell pathology. Thus, the cell over-hydration serves as a diagnostic marker for carcinogenesis, while cell dehydration-as a marker for nerve and cardiovascular disorders. From these data it is followed that different metabolic pathways control cell hydration in excitable and soft tissues. From the diagnostic point of view, it is important to evaluate which of these two tissue hydration types is more sensitive to pathology of organism, including carcinogenesis.Previously, we have shown that the activation of Na/Ca exchange in the reverse mode leading to cell dehydration serves as a primary mechanism for ageing-induced neuronal and cardiovascular disorders. However, the role of Na/Ca exchange in the reverse mode in the regulation of cell hydration in soft tissues of healthy and tumor carrying animals is not clearly identified yet. For this purpose, the comparative study of cell hydration, [ 3 H]-ouabain binding with the cell membrane, the 45 Ca 2+ uptake and intracellular cAMP contents in brain cortex and spleen tissues in healthy and sarcoma-180 tumor carrying mice is performed. The obtained data bring us to the conclusion that in the spleen tissues of tumor carrying mice there is over-expression of cAMP-activated Na/Ca exchangers in the reverse mode in the cell membrane, which leads to over-hydration of the spleen tissues as a result of stimulation of endogenous water molecule formation by the intracellular Ca 2+ -induced stimulation of mitochondrial oxidative processes. It is suggested that the over-expression of cAMP-activated Na/Ca exchange in the reverse mode in the cell membrane of soft tissues could serve as an early diagnostic marker for carcinogenesis and that over-hydration of tumor cells is due to the increase of water permeability in the membrane as a result of abnormal increase of [Ca 2+ ] i .