Analysis of the role of kynurenine metabolism in drosophila viability control at the high sugar diet influence

Abstract

Aim. To analyze viability and life span of drosophila at genetic and pharmacological inhibition of tryptophan-kynurenine metabolism, when cultivating on the standard nutritive medium and at a high sugar diet. Methods. Wild type stock and the stock with vermilion mutation have been used. Viability (number of individuals, mortality at the pupal stage) and median life span of imagoes have been determined. Results. High sugar diet has been found to negatively affect the viability of drosophila, leading to increased mortality at the pupal stage and decrease of males’ life span; wild-type stock is less resistant to the influence of such diet as compared with mutant stock. Berberine (an inhibitor of tryptophan dioxygenase) when added to the high sugar nutritive medium reduces the negative effect of a high sugar diet on life span of the wild-type stock: males’ life span reaches control values and in females life span is even more than in the control. Conclusions. Decrease of kynurenines content in the flies organisms (both at the genetic and pharmacological inhibition of tryptophan-kynurenine metabolism) may attenuate negative influence of the high sugar diet.
 Keywords: drosophila, viability, life span, kynurenine pathway of tryptophan metabolism, high sugar diet.