Abstract
Taurine is one of the main ingredients used in energy drinks which are highly consumed in adolescents for their sugary taste and stimulating effect. With energy drinks becoming a worldwide phenomenon, the biological effects of these beverages must be evaluated in order to fully comprehend the potential impact of these products on the health due to the fact nutrition is closely related to science since the population consumes food to prevent certain diseases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the biological effects of taurine, glucose, classic Red Bull® and sugar-free Red Bull® in order to check the food safety and the nutraceutical potential of these compounds, characterising different endpoints: (i) Toxicology, antitoxicology, genotoxicology and life expectancy assays were performed in the Drosophila melanogaster model organism; (ii) The in vitro chemopreventive activity of testing compounds was determined by assessing their cytotoxicity, the proapoptotic DNA-damage capability to induce internucleosomal fragmentation, the strand breaks activity and the modulator role on the methylation status of genomic repetitive sequences of HL-60 promyelocytic cells. Whereas none tested compounds showed toxic or genotoxic effect, all tested compounds exerted antitoxic and antigenotoxic activity in Drosophila. Glucose, classic Red Bull® and sugar-free Red Bull® were cytotoxic in HL-60 cell line. Classic Red Bull® induced DNA internucleosomal fragmentation although none of them exhibited DNA damage on human leukaemia cells. In conclusion, the tested compounds are safe on Drosophila melanogaster and classic Red Bull® could overall possess nutraceutical potential in the in vivo and in vitro model used in this study. Besides, taurine could holistically be one of the bioactive compounds responsible for the biological activity of classic Red Bull®.
Highlights
Energy drinks are caffeinated soft drinks which adolescents consume for the taste and stimulating effect
The aim of this study was to evaluate the biological effects of CRB, Sugar Free Red Bull® (SFRB), TAU and GLU in order to check the food safety and the nutraceutical potential of these compounds, characterising different endpoints: (i) Assays of toxicology, antitoxicology, genotoxicology and life expectancy were performed in individuals chronically treated with the tested compounds in the Drosophila melanogaster model organism; (ii) The in vitro chemopreventive activity of testing compounds was determined by assessing their cytotoxicity, the proapoptotic DNA-damage capability to induce internucleosomal fragmentation, the strand breaks activity and the modulator role on the methylation status of genomic repetitive sequences of HL-60 promyelocytic cells
The results shown that CRB, SFRB, TAU and GLU could be considered safe on Drosophila taking the lethal dose 50 (LD50) parameter into account as well as genotoxicity was not found
Summary
Energy drinks are caffeinated soft drinks which adolescents consume for the taste and stimulating effect. Energy drink intake is increasing all over the world as well as the scientific studies related to their effects [1,2]. Manufacturers of these beverages encourage their consumption with statements claiming a diversity of benefits [3], stating that these products are appropriate for consumers and free of danger. With energy drinks becoming a worldwide phenomenon, the biological effects of these beverages must be evaluated in order to fully comprehend the potential impact of these products on health.
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