GMO Research
To the editors: The suggestion that “golden” rice, bioengineered to contain Beta-carotene (1), could have a “real impact on the health of children living in Southeast Asia” (2) deserves critical scrutiny from nutrition professionals. This rice, although not yet available commercially, has become the “poster child” of the food biotechnology industry’s extensive public relations campaign …
Abstract: The broad-spectrum herbicide glyphosate (common trade name “Roundup”) was first sold to farmers in 1974. Since the late 1970s, the volume of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) applied has increased approximately 100-fold. Further increases in the volume applied are likely due to more and higher rates of application in response to the widespread emergence of glyphosate-resistant …
Keywords: Glyphosate, Roundup Ready Soybean, Glycine Max, Sudden Death Syndrome, Fusarium solani Citation: Myers, O., Schmidt, M., Lightfoot, B., Njiti, V., Shenaut, M. and Buehler, R., 1999, August. Interaction between application of roundup ultra to roundup ready soybean and subsequent response to sudden death syndrome (SDS). In Proceedings of the 6th World Soybean Research Conference, …
Abstract: Pesticides may be involved in oyster summer mortality events, not necessarily as a single causative agent but as an additional stressor. In this context, the present study aimed to assess the toxicity of glyphosate, its by-product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) and two commercial formulations, Roundup Express(®) (R(EX)) and Roundup Allées et Terrasses(®) (R(AT)), containing glyphosate …
Text: In Reply – We are keenly aware that the topic of glyphosate is highly controversial, often acrimonious, and stretches across diverse political and geographical boundaries. Dr Karberg and colleagues had concerns about our assay. We were not able to include details of our assay methods as we were limited to 6 references. The methodology …
Abstract: We measured excretion levels of glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) in participants from the Rancho Bernardo Study (RBS) of Healthy Aging. Mean glyphosate and AMPA levels and the proportion of samples with detectable levels increased over time. Animal and human studies suggest that chronic exposure to glyphosate-based herbicides can induce adverse health …
Abstract: The quality of diets in rodent feeding trials is crucial. We describe the contamination with environmental pollutants of 13 laboratory rodent diets from 5 continents. Measurements were performed using accredited methodologies. All diets were contaminated with pesticides (1-6 out of 262 measured), heavy metals (2-3 out of 4, mostly lead and cadmium), PCDD/Fs (1-13 …
Abstract: We are concerned about the characterization of the tested diet in the study of Delaney et al. (2014), investigating the subchronic health effects of the Roundup tolerant (DP-Ø73496-4) genetically modified canola on rats. The conclusion can be used by regulatory authorities. The presence of other Roundup tolerant GMOs and of Roundup herbicide residues were …
Abstract: Glyphosate is one of the most widely applied herbicides globally but its persistence in seawater has not been reported. Here we quantify the biodegradation of glyphosate using standard “simulation” flask tests with native bacterial populations and coastal seawater from the Great Barrier Reef. The half-life for glyphosate at 25 °C in low-light was 47 days, extending …
Text: In our lifetime we are experiencing never before seen rates of obesity, with a 68% rate of overweight in adults. In my field of gynecologic oncology, our surgical cases have become tremendously challenging due to the large size of our patients. When I was in residency training in the mid 1980s, it was rare …
Abstract: A variety of current-use pesticides were determined in weekly composite air and rain samples collected during the 1995 and 2007 growing seasons in the Mississippi Delta (MS, USA) agricultural region. Similar sampling and analytical methods allowed for direct comparison of results. Decreased overall pesticide use in 2007 relative to 1995 generally resulted in decreased …
Abstract: This paper explores the unequal distribution of the environmental and social costs and benefits of the genetically modified (GM) soy model in Argentina and its impact on grievance formation and the emergence of contestation. In the 1990s, Argentina transitioned into a neoliberal agro‐industrial model based on producing GM soy for export. Though celebrated as …
Abstract: Since the first product became commercially available in 1995, biotechnology has become the fastest growing crop technology, dominating large shares of the global agricultural market. The development of biotechnology, however, has given rise to questions regarding human and ecological safety, culminating in local and global political battles. While researchers interested in biotech politics have …
Abstract: Glyphosate [(N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine)] is a widely used herbicide and it is known to compete for the same sorption sites in soil as phosphorus. Persistence and losses of glyphosate were monitored in a field with low phosphorus status and possible correlation between glyphosate and phosphorus leaching losses was studied. Glyphosate and its metabolite AMPA (aminomethyl phosphonic …
Abstract: Translocation of glyphosate (N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine) to plant roots and its impact on detected herbicide residues in sandy loam soil were studied in a glasshouse pot experiment in Finland. Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa, Willd) plants in two different growing phases (6–8 and 12–14 leaf stages, groups A and B, respectively) were sprayed with non-labelled glyphosate. Bare soil …
Text: Glyphosate [N (phosphonomethyl)glycine], the active ingredient of formulated herbicides including Roundup and others, is the most widely used herbicide compound in the world for vegetation management in agricultural, urban/suburban, aquatic, publically-held, and recreational ecosystems. The herbicide became very popular for non-selective weed management used in burndown or knockdown applications in field preparation prior to …
Abstract: Pesticide leaching is an important process with respect to contamination risk to the aquatic environment. The risk of leaching was thus evaluated for glyphosate (N-phosphonomethyl-glycine) and its degradation product AMPA (amino-methylphosphonic acid) under field conditions at one sandy and two loamy sites. Over a 2-yr period, tile-drainage water, ground water, and soil water were …
Abstract: Biotechnology is diversifying rapidly through the development and application of new approaches to genome editing and ongoing research into synthetic biology. Proponents of biotechnology are enthusiastic about these new developments and have recently begun calling for environmental movements to abandon their campaigns against Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and for organic agriculture to reconsider its …
Text: Dear Dr. Hayes, I am writing with regard to your extraordinary decision to retract the paper by Séralini et al. published in November of last year, not on the grounds of fraud, malpractice or data misrepresentation, but simply (as far as I can see) because Monsanto and its legion of followers did not like …
Abstract: The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) evaluates causes of cancer with help from independent international experts in an open and transparent manner. Countries, research and regulatory agencies, and other organizations adopt IARC evaluations for communication of human cancer hazards, and for strategies to prevent cancer. Scientists worldwide endorse IARC cancer evaluations and …
Abstract: Glyphosate is the main nonselective, systemic herbicide used against a wide range of weeds. Its worldwide use has expanded because of extensive use of certain agricultural practices such as no-till cropping, and widespread application of glyphosate-resistant genetically modified crops. Glyphosate has a reputation of being nontoxic to animals and rapidly inactivated in soils. However, …
Abstract: Argentina is the second largest world producer of soybeans (after the USA) and along with the increase in planted surface and production in the country, glyphosate consumption has grown in the same way. We investigated the effects of Roundup (glyphosate formulation) on the periphyton colonization. The experiment was carried out over 42 days in …
Abstract: Residues of the herbicide glyphosate (N-phosphonomethylglicine) and its main metabolite, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), were determined in a forest soil in north-west Spain, previously treated with 5 and 8 l ha(-1) of glyphosate. Both products were monitored in the solid and liquid soil phases for an 8-week period after the treatment. Soil samples were extracted …
Abstract: Glyphosate and AMPA residues in oversprayed and buffered streams were monitored following application of ROUNDUP (2.0 kg/ha) to 45 ha of a coastal British Columbia watershed. Maximum glyphosate residues (stream water, 162 pg/L; sediments, 6.80 pg/g dry mass; suspended sediments, C0.03 pg/L) were observed in two intentionally oversprayed tributaries, dissipating to <1 pg/L within …
Abstract: The herbicide glyphosate, N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine, has been used extensively in the past 40 years, under the assumption that side effects were minimal. However, in recent years, concerns have increased worldwide about the potential wide ranging direct and indirect health effects of the large scale use of glyphosate. In 2015, the World Health Organization reclassified …
