The Effect of Anti-Inflammatory Herbs on Heat-Stress Resistance in Drosophila melanogaster

As temperatures rise, heat stress poses a significant threat to many organisms, including humans. This danger can be lessened by anti-inflammatory compounds in the diet, which help improve heat tolerance. This study aimed to observe whether the food additives of turmeric powder and pure peppermint extract would increase the heat tolerance of Drosophila melanogaster. Flies were cultured in groups of 35 each, with a group fed unaltered food (control), a group fed food with additional 5% turmeric powder, and a group fed with additional 5% pure peppermint extract. After seven days, flies were exposed to 35 °C for 20 minutes and monitored for recovery time for three trials, and recorded for survival after the final trial. Flies fed turmeric powder recovered substantially faster (mean = 46.67 s) and had the lowest mortality rate (11%). The control flies did not recover as fast (mean = 257.33 s) and had a moderate amount die (37%). Flies fed peppermint recovered the slowest during the first trial (1143 s) and experienced 100% mortality, which meant no further data could be collected. The results confirmed that the surviva rates were statistically significant with a p value less than 0.001. These results supported the hypothesis for turmeric powder but remained inconclusive for peppermint extract due to unforeseen effects with the viscosity and strength. Overall, turmeric consumption improved both recovery time and survival under heat stress, suggesting that anti-inflammatory dietary compounds increase organisms' heat tolerance and could warrant further studies and application in humans.