Ingestion of the anti-bacterial agent, gemifloxacin mesylate, leads to increased gst activity and peroxidation products in hemolymph of Galleria mellonella l. (lepidoptera: pyralidae)

Gemifloxacin mesylate (GEM) is a synthetic, fourth-generation fluoroquinolone antibacterial antibiotic that has a broad spectrum of activity against bacteria. GEM inhibits DNA synthesis by inhibiting DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV activities. Recent research into insect nutrition and mass-rearing programs, in which antibiotics are incorporated into the culture media to maintain diet quality, raised a question of whether clinical antibiotics influence the health or biological performance of the insects that ingest these compounds. Because some antibiotics are pro-oxidant compounds, we addressed the question with experiments designed to assess the effects of GEM (mesylate salt) on oxidative stress indicators, using Galleria mellonella larvae. The insects were reared from first-instar larvae to adulthood on artificial diets amended with GEM at 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, or 1.0%. Feeding on the 1% diets led to significantly increased hemolymph contents of the lipid peroxidation product, malondialdehyde and protein oxidation products, protein carbonyl. All GEM concentrations led to increased hemolymph glutathione S-transferase activity. We inferred that although it was not directly lethal to G. mellonella larvae, dietary exposure to GEM exerts measurable oxidative damage, possibly on insects generally. Long-term, multigenerational effects remain unknown. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.