Preservatives are the substances added to food to prevent
decompositions by microbial growth or undesirable chemical
changes. There are many preservatives which are commonly
used in food industries including benzoate group, which
is used as bacteriostatic and fungistatic in acidic food and
drink such as vinegar, carbonated drinks, jams, fruit juice,
and condiments. Sodium benzoate is commonly used in
worldwide food. Nowadays food and drink consumption
involve with these preservatives, due to almost products even
fresh or dried food are always added preservatives to extend
lifespan. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates
the amount of food additives allowable in foods or other
goods to help ensure safety and reduce the possibility of
overconsumption. For using benzoate group such as sodium
benzoate and potassium benzoate in dairy products such
as ice cream, pudding, and yoghurt, FDA allows using
sodium benzoate at 300 mg/1 kg. As the result of long term
intake even though it is small amount, the preservatives
may cause harm to consumers within some sickness and
in chromosomes level. The following adverse effects of
food preservatives are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, rhinitis,
bronchospasm, migraine, anaphylaxis, and hyperactivity in
children [1].
Micronucleus test (MN) is the test system for the detection
of chemicals which induces the formation of micronuclei
in the cytoplasm of binucleated cells. These micronuclei may
originate from chromosome fragments or whole chromosomes
which are unable to migrate with the rest of the
chromosomes during the anaphase of cell division [2]. Due
to the toxicity of sodium benzoate to human, the purpose of
this study was to evaluate the potential genotoxic effects of
sodium benzoate which was one of the food preservatives on
human lymphocytes.
Extracellular superoxide dismutase (EC-SOD) is an
enzyme that in humans is encoded by the SOD3 gene. This
gene encodes a member of the superoxide dismutase (SOD)
protein family. SODs are antioxidant enzymes that catalyze
the dismutation of two superoxide radicals into hydrogen
peroxide and oxygen. The product of this gene is thought
to protect the brain, lungs, and other tissues from oxidative