Thesis title: Microscopic mechanisms of the EM field interaction with biological targets
Over the past decade, electromagnetic fields (EMFs) have gained growing attention across
communication, biomedical, and bioprocessing technologies, expanding both their technological
impact and translational potential. Within this interdisciplinary context, the field of
Bioelectromagnetics has evolved into a mature scientific discipline devoted to elucidating how EM
exposure interacts with biological matter, from fundamental mechanisms of field–cell coupling to
safety assessment and biomedical innovation. At the international and national levels, coordinated
efforts led by the scientific organizations foster continuous exchange on EM biointeractions and
exposure standards strongly supporting the development of research activities on electromagnetic
interactions with biosystems and contributing to bridging fundamental understanding with
regulatory and biomedical applications. Within this framework, understanding biological responses
beyond thermal mechanisms, and exploring how EM fields can be harnessed as selective and
minimally invasive tools for therapeutic modulation, has become a central scientific challenge.
The present dissertation contributes to these research lines by combining multiscale numerical
modelling and controlled in-vitro experimentation to investigate EM-mediated mechanisms and
applications. The work addresses two main objectives. First, it examines non-thermal interactions
at the cellular and molecular level, employing atomistic simulations and electromagnetic exposure
systems to study how radiofrequency fields, including 5G-relevant bands, may influence membrane
environments and ion-channel behavior under carefully controlled dosimetric conditions. Second,
it
explores electric and magnetic field-based strategies for applications like for controlled
therapeutic and related biomedical applications. In particular nanosecond pulsed electric fields are
used to modulate membrane permeability and enable targeted release from lipid carriers and bio
based matrices, while static magnetic fields are applied to magnetically responsive hydrogels to
regulate diffusive transport in a reversible and selective manner. Beyond these two main objectives,
extensive use of molecular-level approaches such as molecular dynamics simulations provides a
solid foundation for understanding the mechanisms of interaction, offering atomistic insight into
how both radiofrequency and pulsed electromagnetic fields affect membrane receptors and their
surrounding environments.
By integrating in-silico and in-vitro approaches, this PhD thesis establishes a coherent
framework to study EM bio-interactions across scales, from molecular structure and membrane
physics to engineered delivery and exposure systems. The results improve our understanding of
non-thermal EM effects and demonstrate the feasibility of field-triggered delivery concepts,
contributing to the development of next-generation bioelectromagnetic technologies.