Carcinogen sodium arsenite disrupts antioxidant and redox homeostasis in Drosophila melanogaster

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Objectives The inadvertent exposure to environmental contaminants has been reported to induce cancer in different animal models. Here, we investigated the toxicity of Sodium Arsenite (SA), a Class I Carcinogen in Drosophila melanogaster . Methods Harwich fly strain (1–3 days old) of both sexes were orally exposed to SA (0, 0.0312, 0.0625 and 0.125 mM) for 14 days for survival study. Thereafter, 5 days exposure period was selected to assess the toxic effects of SA on oxidative stress and antioxidant markers. Results The results indicated that SA induced significant reduction in survival and emergence rate of flies. Furthermore, SA significantly increased Nitric Oxide (NO, nitrite and nitrate) and Hydrogen Peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) levels in flies compared with control (p<0.05). In addition, SA inhibited catalase and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) activities, and depleted total thiol and glutathione (GSH) contents. Moreover, acetylcholinesterase activity significantly increased in flies treated with SA when compared with control. Conclusions Sodium arsenite-induced reduction in survival and emergence rates of flies occurred via the disruption of oxidative stress-antioxidant homeostasis in D. melanogaster .