Application of Image Correlation Analysis to Detect Cell Sensitivity to Magnetic Field

Background. The increase in technogenic electromagnetic load leaves open the question of its impact on living cells, which do not have a specific evolutionary mechanism for responding to such an environmental factor. Currently, there are not enough suitable tests that can detect the effects of weak electromagnetic fields. Visualization of morphological changes in cell structure by simple optical methods does not give results, therefore, an additional image processing mechanism may be useful.


Objective. To verify the suitability of the method of correlation analysis of microimages using the example of yeast cells dried in saline on a silicon substrate to detect the effect of a static magnetic field on the surface structure of cells that do not have defined mechanisms of sensitivity to it.


Methods. Digital microimages of drops of yeast suspension in saline, dried on silicon surfaces under the influence of a static magnetic field of 0.17 T and without the field, were analyzed by one of the fractal methods - the correlation di-mension parameter was determined, which was based on the matrix of pixel brightness values.


Results. The suitability of the correlation analysis method for determining changes in the surface structure of yeast cells and sodium chloride crystals under the influence of a static magnetic field of 0.17 T during drying of the yeast sus-pension was shown: the correlation measurability index, which indicated the variability of the structures, increased for yeast cells, and decreased for NaCl crystals.


Conclusions. In the case of correlation dimension, unlike other dimensions, its calculation is carried out using bright-ness values, therefore, even those image elements that are almost indistinguishable to the eye are taken into account. That is why this method turned out to be sensitive to changes in the structure and relief of the yeast cell wall dried un-der the influence of a static magnetic field of 0.17 T, recording its complications, and also demonstrating a more homo-geneous structure of the formed NaCl crystals.