The Open Cell Development & Biology Journal

2011, 3 : 6-9
Published online 2011 August 25. DOI: 10.2174/1874085501103010006
Publisher ID: TOCBJ-3-6

RESEARCH ARTICLE
 Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) Does Not Exhibit Mutagenic Activity

Nora Apsel1 , Elisa Ruiu2 and Krishna Moorthi Bhat, *,1,2
1 Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch School of Medicine, Galveston,Texas 77555, USA
2 Department of Neurology, University of Cagliari, Monserato, Sardenia, Italy

* Address correspondence to this author at the Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch School of Medicine,Galveston, Texas 77555, USA; Tel: 409-747-2214; Fax: 409-747-2187; E-mail: kmbhat@utmb.edu

ABSTRACT

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an important antioxidant and there is a wide spread supplementation of diets with vitamin C among the general population in the form of tablets or powder. Vitamin C is also present in multi-vitamin tablets along with Zn and other transitional metal ions. Recent reports, however, have suggested that vitamin C exhibits Vpro-oxidant properties and in vitro it can produce genotoxins. Furthermore, a combination of vitamin C and transitional metal ions had an additive effect in in vitro studies. These results raise the possibility of mutagenic toxicity for vitamin C with or without the transitional metal ions. We performed a genetic screen to test if vitamin C can cause mutations in vivo using the model organism Drosophila. We report that a combination of vitamin C and Zn had no mutagenic activity in vivo in Drosophila. Additionally, we describe a simple screen using Drosophila to test mutagenic activity of any compound.

Keywords:

Drosophila, vitamin C, antioxidant, prooxidant.