What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to evaluate the long-term effects of manganese and quercetin exposure during development on oxidative stress and DNA damage in fruit flies.

April 10, 2026Open Access

Developmental exposure to manganese or quercetin differentially programs adult oxidative stress, DNA fragmentation and behaviour in Drosophila

Key Points

This research aims to evaluate the long-term effects of manganese and quercetin exposure during development on oxidative stress and DNA damage in fruit flies.
Exposed Drosophila larvae to varying doses of manganese and quercetin.
Assessed adult outcomes including survival, negative geotaxis, and various biochemical markers.
Used statistical methods (ANOVA/Tukey, Kruskal-Wallis/Dunn) to analyze data.
Manganese exposure resulted in dose-dependent increases in hydrogen peroxide levels.
Developmental manganese exposure led to increased DNA fragmentation index.
Quercetin exposure showed protective effects on oxidative stress markers and decreased genomic fragmentation.

Abstract

Developmental exposure to environmental neurotoxicants can program persistent vulnerability to oxidative and genomic injury. We compared the long-term effects of developmental manganese (Mn) and the dietary flavonoid quercetin in Drosophila melanogaster. Larvae were exposed to ordered doses of Mn or quercetin; adult outcomes (n = 4 vials/group unless stated) included survival, negative geotaxis (RING), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), glutathione redox state (GSH/GSSG), malondialdehyde (MDA), antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT), acetylcholinesterase, dopamine, DNA fragmentation index (DFI) and advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). Conventional omnibus and pairwise post-hoc tests (ANOVA/Tukey or Kruskal–Wallis/Dunn) identified significant, dose-dependent increases in H2O2 and DFI with Mn exposure. Quercetin developmental exposure produced protective trends in redox markers and reduced genomic fragmentation signals. These findings implicate oxidative burden and DNA damage as measurable biomarkers of developmental Mn programming and identify candidate endpoints for targeted mechanistic and translational studies.

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Cite This Study

Arogundade et al. (Tue,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69d8940c6c1944d70ce04f7a https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/s44339-026-00054-0

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