BACKGROUND: Recently the authors reported the experimental evidence of the developing concept of Electro Magnetic Information Transfer (EMIT) of specific molecular signals directly and continuously on target cell picking up the molecular signals from the source chemical effector. This was in agreement with the pioneering work of Jaques Benveniste suggesting that the electronic transmission of the 4-phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) signals could be transferred to target neutrophils by an oscillator when coupled to two electromagnetic coils demonstrating the same biologic activity and so mimicking the biologic function of the original chemical active molecule. The present work is the further development of recent research designed to verify the hypotheses that water could record and replay the EMIT from biologic active chemical molecules. METHODS: Retinoic acid, a well-known chemical differentiating agent, was placed at room temperature in the input coil connected to an oscillator (VEGA select 719), while culture medium for human neuroblastoma cell (LAN-5) and NT2/D1 stem teratocarcinoma human cells was placed into the output coil and exposed to signals for 1 hour. At the end the oscillator was switched off and LAN-5 neuroblastoma and NT2/D1 stem teratocarcinoma cells were seeded, respectively, into the medium conditioned as reported into an incubator under controlled conditions. After 5 days of incubations, cells were examined by different strategies such as morphological and biochemical parameters. RESULTS: It was demonstrated that the electromagnetic signals coming from the retinoic acid molecule could be recorded and stored by the aqueous system of the cell culture medium. Cells seeded in the electronically conditioned medium received physical information generating a statistically significant decrease in metabolic activity and changes in phenotypical structure with protrusion typical of differentiated neuronal cells. CONCLUSIONS: These experimental results provide some evidence that water could be tuned in a resonant manner by the EMIT procedure appropriately carried through a carrier frequency provided by the oscillator in a manner that seems related to the chemical structure of the source molecule as, in this case, retinoic acid.