Differential impact of pure glyphosate and glyphosate-based herbicide in a model of peripheral nervous system myelination

Excerpt

Since its introduction to the market in 1974, glyphosate has become the world’s most commonly used herbicide. Its herbicidal activity is believed to result from the inhibition of the shikimate enzymatic pathway required for the biosynthesis of aromatic amino acids in plants [2, 4]. While there is no relevant physiological role for the shikimate pathway in mammals, the potential health risks of exposure to glyphosate residues from food and environmental contamination continue to excite controversy [8, 9]. Although glyphosate has long been marketed as safe for humans and higher animals, several studies have implicated pure glyphosate or glyphosate-based herbicide (GBH) formulations in cytotoxicity, carcinogenicity, inflammation and endocrine disruption [5, 8, 10]. GBH formulations often contain the isopropylamine salt of glyphosate in combination with undisclosed auxiliary agents and surfactants which are supposed to enhance compound stability and penetrance into plant tissues. While manufacturers of GBH have claimed these auxiliary agents to be inert, several reports suggest that GBH formulations may be considerably more toxic than pure glyphosate [1, 3, 7, 8]. …