Effects of glyphosate-based herbicide exposure on reproduction and development of Odontesthes bonariensis.

MENÉNDEZ-HELMANN RJ; GARRIZ A; MIRANDA LA

Chascomús

Jornada; XVI Jornadas de la Sociedad Argentina de Biología.; 2014

SAB

Water pollution by agrochemicals is currently one of the most critical problems for the conservation of aquatic ecosystems. Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine; PMG] is the main broad-spectrum herbicide used for the control of a wide range of weeds in soybean crops. The aim of this study was to analize the impact of glyphosate-based herbicide on sperm motility and embryonic-larval development of freshwater fish Odontesthes bonariensis. Semen samples were activated with tap water (control) and using herbicide solutions (containing 1, 5, 10 or 50 mg PMG.L-1), and the motility parameters were determined by Computer-Assisted Sperm Analysis (CASA) system. Embryos and larvae were incubated in an incubator chamber (temperature and photoperiod controlled) using control media or the same concentrations of glyphosate-based herbicide previously detailed. The embryonic and larval development parameters were daily analyzed. Results showed that only the highest herbicide concentration significantly affect sperm motility. The survival and hatching rate of embryos were not affected by any of the different concentrations tested. On the other hand,  concentrations of 5, 10 and 50 mg PMG.L-1 significantly increased larval mortality, confirming the high susceptibility of the larval stage to glyphosate-based herbicide exposure.