Abstract It is suggested that oxidative stress induced by cellular reactive oxygen species is one of the major causal factors of aging. The effect of dietary supplementation of anti-oxidants on response to environmental stressors and lifespan has been studied in various model organisms. In the present study, we examine the effect of Artemisia annua extract on resistance to oxidative, heat, and ultraviolet stresses in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Artemisia annua significantly increases survival under oxidative and heat stresses, however has no effects in response to ultraviolet stress. Then, we measured the in vivo changes in expression of stress-responsive genes by Artemisia annua using green fluorescence protein. The expression of hsp-16.2, known to be involved in response to heat stress, is significantly increased by Artemisia annua supplementation. An anti-oxidant gene, sod-3, was also up-regulated by Artemisia annua. However, both mean and maximum lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans was not altered by dietary supplementation of Artemisia annua. These findings indicate that Artemisia annua confers health-promoting effects through increasing the resistance to environmental stressors and has no effect on lifespan in C. elegans. Our study suggests that Artemisia annua can be used for the development of novel natural therapeutics for diseases caused by environmental stressors.

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to determine the effect of N-acetyl-L-cysteine, a modified sulfur-containing amino acid that acts as a strong cellular antioxidant, on the response to environmental stressors and on aging in C. elegans. METHOD: The survival of worms under oxidative stress conditions induced by paraquat was evaluated with and without in vivo N-acetyl-L-cysteine treatment. The effect of N-acetyl-L-cysteine on the response to other environmental stressors, including heat stress and ultraviolet irradiation (UV), was also monitored. To investigate the effect on aging, we examined changes in lifespan, fertility, and expression of age-related biomarkers in C. elegans after N-acetyl-L-cysteine treatment. RESULTS: Dietary N-acetyl-L-cysteine supplementation significantly increased resistance to oxidative stress, heat stress, and UV irradiation in C. elegans. In addition, N-acetyl-L-cysteine supplementation significantly extended both the mean and maximum lifespan of C. elegans. The mean lifespan was extended by up to 30.5% with 5 mM N-acetyl-L-cysteine treatment, and the maximum lifespan was increased by 8 days. N-acetyl-L-cysteine supplementation also increased the total number of progeny produced and extended the gravid period of C. elegans. The green fluorescent protein reporter assay revealed that expression of the stress-responsive genes, sod-3 and hsp-16.2, increased significantly following N-acetyl-L-cysteine treatment. CONCLUSION: N-acetyl-L-cysteine supplementation confers a longevity phenotype in C. elegans, possibly through increased resistance to environmental stressors.