Antioxidants cannot suppress the lethal phenotype of a Drosophila melanogaster model of Huntington's disease.

Substantial evidence suggests that antioxidants may play a major role in delaying the progress of Huntington's disease (HD). Here we investigated the effects of superoxide dismutase (cytoplasmic Cu/ZnSOD and mitochondrial MnSOD) and supplementation with dietary antioxidants (alpha-tocopherol and coenzyme Q10) on survival to adulthood in a Drosophila melanogaster model of HD. Our results illustrate that neither overexpression of superoxide dismutase nor supplementation of dietary antioxidants can rescue the lethal phenotype of HD flies. We discuss these results in conjunction with other evidence that antioxidants may only avert the oxidative stress induced progression of HD.