Compound in artificial sweetener Truvia can kill fruit flies, according to a recent study.
Researchers at Drexel University determined that erythritol, which is the main ingredient in Truvia, is toxic to Drosophila melanogaster, according to a press release issued by the university.
Erythritol is a natural sugar and is used in low doses in several types of fruits. The compound was approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a food additive in 2001.
The study suggests that the sweetener can be used to fight common pests without polluting the environment.
The study started out as a middle-school science project. Simon Kaschock-Marenda began the research on Truvia's effects on fruit flies with assistance from his father Daniel Marenda, a biology professor at Drexel.
The father-son team tested fruit fly's longevity in the presence of different types of sugar substitutes. They found that flies exposed to Truvia had shorter lifespans that flies that grew up using Splenda, Equal, Sweet'N Low or Pure Via, Live Science.
The lifespan of fruit flies under normal conditions was found to be approximately 38 to 51 days.
When exposed to erythritol, the flies lived under 6 days, according to the release. The sugar substitute also impaired the flies' motor functions.
"Indeed what we found is that the main component of Truvia, the sugar erythritol, appears to have pretty potent insecticidal activity in our flies," Marenda said in a news release.
After conducting additional research at a laboratory, the researchers discovered that the fruit flies prefer erythritol over table sugar.
The team determined that high concentration of erythritol, approximately 2.4 grams in 10 milliliters of water, killed the fruit flies off in just two days, according to Live Science.
Researchers haven't discovered yet how the sugar substitute affects fruit flies' lifespan or if the compound is toxic to other insects.
"We are not going to see the planet sprayed with erythritol and the chances for widespread crop application are slim," Sean O'Donnell, a professor of biology at Drexel University in Philadelphia, one of the study authors, said in the study. "But on a small scale, in places where insects will come to a bait, consume it and die, this could be huge."
The study was published recently in the journal PLoS One.
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