The effect of trifluoperazine on the induction of sex-linked recessive lethals by cyclophosphamide in Drosophila melanogaster

The effects of trifluoperazine on the mutagenicity of cyclophosphamide were examined in the progenies of Drosophila melanogaster males injected with 2 mul of 5.0 mM cyclophosphamide and/or 0.1 mM trifluoperazine. The Muller-5 method was used to study the induction of sex-linked recessive lethals in five successive broods representing the different stages of spermatogenesis. Results showed that both cyclophosphamide and trifluoperazine were proportionally toxic to the injected males. While cyclophosphamide was less toxic than trifluoperazine, it increased the frequencies of induced complete and mosaic lethals significantly (5% level) in all stages of spermatogenesis contrary to trifluoperazine which was non mutagenic and had only an additive effect over the toxicity of cyclophosphamide. The sizes of the mutated gonad tissue in the F-1 mosaic female progenies of the males treated with cyclophosphamide alone ranged from 14% to 17% and of those treated with cyclophosphamide in association with trifluoperazine varied between 18% and 19%. Both complete and mosaic sex-linked lethals induced by cyclophosphamide treatments alone and in association with trifluoperazine were detected in singles and clusters.