EFFECT OF VITAMINS C AND E ON NONYLPHENOL-INDUCED DNA DAMAGE AND TEFU GENE EXPRESSION IN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Nonylphenol (NP) is one of the major environmental endocrine disrupters that can cause oxidative damage.Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and vitamin E (a-tocopherol) are powerful antioxidants that could offset the effects of NP and are compounds that should be taken daily. In this study, the potential effects of the separate and combined administration of NP (1 and 10 mg/L) and vitamins C and E (25 mg/L) on DNA damage and telomere fusion (TEFU) gene expression in Drosophila melanogaster, a model organism, were investigated over 40 days. For the NP-administered groups, DNA damage increased while vitamins C and E reduced these effects, especially those induced by a co-administered group of NP and vitamin E. Furthermore, telomerase and DNA damage-associated TEFU gene expression levels increased in the NP-administered groups compared to the control group, while they decreased in the vitamin C and E administered groups. Consequently, it was concluded that vitamin C and E prevents the negative effects of NP on DNA damage.