Study of the Genotoxicity of Beta-Propiolactone Using <i>E. coli</i> lux Biosensors and Nematode <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i>

Abstract

For the first time, lux biosensors of E. coli and the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans were used to study the genotoxicity of beta-propiolactone (BPL) used in the production of inactivated viral vaccines as an inactivator. It has been shown that the DNA-damaging activity of BPL is due not only to its ability to bind to bacterial DNA, but also to the ability to generate in the cell such reactive oxygen species as superoxide anion and peroxide, which have genotoxic activity. It was found that BPL in a dose-dependent manner, starting from a concentration of 0.001 mol/L, reduces the survival of bacteria. However, the intensity of expression of the antioxidant defense gene of superoxide dismutase soxS and the DNA repair gene colD increased. BPL induced DNA breaks in nematode cells detected by electrophoresis. The antioxidant acetylcysteine (ACC) reduced the genotoxic effects of BPL on both bacteria and nematode.