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Unsustainable agriculture
Published in Peter N. Nemetz, Unsustainable World, 2022
The initial optimistic assessment of the use of this herbicide has been tempered by recent research, which has revealed a number of disturbing impacts. Health Canada, the federal agency in charge of assessing the effects of products on human health in Canada, announced in November 2018 that its scientists were reviewing hundreds of documents used during the approval process for glyphosate, because of “troubling allegations” that the chemical might be a human carcinogen (CBC November 11, 2018). This follows a vote by the European Parliament in October 2017 to phase out the use of glyphosate by 2022 and Germany’s decision to ban its use by 2023 (Guardian September 4, 2019a). Controversial research in 2017 found a link between “ultra-low doses” of Roundup herbicide and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in laboratory rats (Mesnage 2017). More recent research (Kubsad et al. 2019) has found epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of pathologies and sperm epimutations in rats. Rodents are frequently used as a surrogate test for effects in humans for two principal reasons: (1) concern over risk and associated ethical issues associated with human testing, and (2) the existence of some genetic and somatic similarities between rats and humans which allow the frequent transferability of rat laboratory results to humans.
Case study: Glyphosate
Published in Dain Bolwell, Governing Technology in the Quest for Sustainability on Earth, 2019
Despite increasing concerns, as late as 2008 one paper by leading plant biologists described glyphosate as “very toxicologically and environmentally safe” and a “virtually ideal herbicide” (Duke and Powles 2008, p. 319). Although eight years later the lead author was wary when asked if he still held the same views, instead referring the question to a toxicologist.16 But irrespective of its toxicity, these authors caution that there are sustainability challenges in the very success of the world’s number one herbicide because “glyphosate-resistant weeds will emerge” so that there needs to be less reliance on glyphosate and more on new chemical, “mechanical and precision application technologies” (ibid., p. 324). Professor Duke advised in 2016 that weed resistance “has grown much worse since our paper was published.”
Selection and Improvement of Industrial Organisms for Biotechnological Applications
Published in Nduka Okafor, Benedict C. Okeke, Modern Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, 2017
Nduka Okafor, Benedict C. Okeke
Engineering plants for resistance to glyphosate will be discussed. Glyphosate (N- phosphonomethylglycine) is a non-selective, broad spectrum herbicide that is systematically translocated to the meristems of growing plants. It causes shikimate accumulation through inhibition of the chloroplast localized EPSP synthase (5- enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase; EPSPs) [EC 2.5.1.19]. Resistance to the herbicide glyphosate has been developed for soybean. Glyphosate is said to be environmentally friendly as it does not accumulate in the environment because it is easily broken by soil bacteria. Glyphosate kills plants by preventing the synthesis of certain amino acids produced by plants but not animals. It acts by inhibiting the enzyme 5-enolpyruvyshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS), an enzyme in the shikimate pathway and plays an important part in the synthesis of aromatic amino acids in plants and bacteria. An EPSPS gene isolated from a glyphosate-resistant E. coli was linked to a plant promoter and termination transcription sequence and cloned into plant cells. Tobacco, tomato, potato, petunia, and cotton have been transfected with glyphosate resistance in this way. They produce large amounts of EPSPS, enough to leave some for the plants cells to utilize for their metabolism after neutralization of a portion by glyphosate.
Evaluation of glyphosate exposure on testosterone among U.S. adult men
Published in Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 2023
Frank Glover, Dana Barr, Jasmin Eatman, Wade Muncey, Francesco Del Giudice, Federico Belladelli, Nicolas Seranio, Michael L. Eisenberg
Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide and the most commonly used herbicide in the U.S., where an estimated 280 million pounds of glyphosate are applied to crop lands annually (Tarazona et al. 2017). Glyphosate is the primary active ingredient in commercial herbicide mixtures under the tradenames Roundup™, Rodeo™, and Eraser™ (Richmond 2018). Since its introduction to the global market in the 1970s, glyphosate has been used to control weed growth and broad leaf foliage in agricultural settings, which has increased global crop yields and economic productivity necessary to support an ever-growing population (Brookes et al. 2017). Despite its benefits, glyphosate has been classified as a potential carcinogen by the International Agency on the Research for Cancer (IARC), and as an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC), where experimental and population studies have demonstrated its adverse effects on the production and function of various hormones including testosterone (Andreotti et al. 2018; Dai et al. 2016; Romano et al. 2010).
Assessment of the bioaccessibility of glyphosate in soil using a physiologically based extraction test
Published in Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 2022
Nnanyelugo G. Odezulu, Y.W. Lowney, Mohammad-Zaman Nouri, Stephen M. Roberts, Leah D. Stuchal
Glyphosate in soil from herbicide use conceivably poses a health risk to humans. Administration of glyphosate to laboratory animals has shown the potential to produce a variety of adverse health effects, including gastrointestinal, ocular, hepatic, renal, and developmental effects (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) 2020). Evidence for glyphosate toxicity from studies in humans is limited, although correlation studies have reported positive associations between glyphosate exposure and effects including) some cancers (Fortes et al. 2016), kidney diseases (Jayasumana et al. 2014), respiratory and skin conditions, and miscarriages (Camacho and Mejía 2017). While the herbicidal effect of glyphosate in soil may be short-lived, observed half-lives vary substantially, from a few to over 200 days (Battaglin et al. 2014). Thus, persistence of bound glyphosate in soil presents an opportunity for human exposure to glyphosate through incidental ingestion, which could be substantial in the case of glyphosate spills.
Degradation of glyphosate herbicide by an electro-Fenton process using carbon felt cathode
Published in Environmental Technology, 2021
Manh Hai Tran, Hoai Chau Nguyen, Thanh Son Le, Viet Anh Dung Dang, The Ha Cao, Cao Khai Le, Trung-Dung Dang
Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine] is a highly effective broad-spectrum, post-emergence, non-selective and commonly applied organophosphate herbicide [4–7]. There was a 100-fold increase in the frequency and volume of application of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) worldwide from the late 1970s to 2016. In response to the global emergence and spread of glyphosate-resistant weeds, the application of this herbicide will strongly increase in the future [8] Because of its high solubility (12 g L−1 at 25°C), this compound can easily penetrate the aqueous environment through direct use, run off or leeching from applications, which causes harmful effects to aquatic biota, phytoplankton and periphyton [9–11]. While glyphosate and formulations such as Roundup have been approved by regulatory bodies worldwide, concerns about their effects on humans and the environment have grown as the global usage of glyphosate increases [8,12]. Recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization (WHO) has placed the glyphosate herbicide into the 2A Group (probably carcinogenic to humans) [13]. A meta-analysis published in 2014 identified an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in workers exposed to glyphosate formulations [14]. Several countries have already prohibited the use of the glyphosate. However, this herbicide is still heavily utilised in Vietnam, which may cause major health problems to farmers and risks to aquatic life in both the short and long term.