The Effect of Dietary Virgin Coconut Oil on Cholesterol Level, Body Weight, and Number of Imagoes in Five Generations of Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract

Obesity is a metabolic abnormality, characterized by accumulation of excess fat, due to unhealthy eating i.e. high fat diet. Coconut oil (Virgin Coconut Oil/VCO) is favorably used to replace palm oil since it is considered healthier. Fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) shares genetics similarities to human, it could be a potential experimental model organism of diseases. This study aimed to determine the effect of dietary VCO on cholesterol level, body weight and number of imago among five generations of D. melanogaster (F₁–F₅). This experimental study tested banana, cornmeal and high-fat diet (cornmeal+1.25%VCO). In each generation (F₁–F₅), cholesterol level and body weight were measured with spectrophotometer and analytical balance, respectively, while the number of imagoes was counted. Statistical analysis was performed to compare parameters between media and between generations, at a significant level of 0.05. There were no significant differences on the cholesterol levels between generations in VCO diets nor compared to the other diets. However, the addition of VCO resulted in a significantly higher body weight for the first generation than the other diets and significantly fewer imagoes than other diets in subsequent generations (F₃-F₅). Induction of VCO diet in Drosophila melanogaster represents a potential model organism for obesity due to its effect on the body weight of the first generation.