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Herbicides en kanker*
Volgens een Oostenrijkse studie blijken veel gebruikte herbiciden zelfs bij minimale inademing al de kans op kanker te doen vergroten. De meest gebruikte stof als herbicide is glyfosaat. Wereldwijd wordt enorm veel Roundup verkocht een combinatie van glyfosaat en andere stoffen waaronder het oppervlakte-actieve polyoxyethyleneamine. Uit de studie blijkt dat zowel glyfosaat alleen als Roundup de kans op kanker doen vergroten, waarbij Roundup de meeste gevolgen heeft. Zelfs bij extreme verdunning tot 1/450 bleken de producten nog kankerverwekkend te zijn. Daardoor lijkt het dat de kans op DNA schade door inademing reëel is.
Cytotoxic and DNA-damaging properties of glyphosate and Roundup in human-derived buccal epithelial cells.
Koller VJ, Fürhacker M, Nersesyan A, Mišík M, Eisenbauer M, Knasmueller S.
Source
Department of Internal Medicine 1, Institute of Cancer Research, Medical University of Vienna, Borschkegasse 8A, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
Abstract
Glyphosate (G) is the largest selling herbicide worldwide; the most common formulations (Roundup, R) contain polyoxyethyleneamine as main surfactant. Recent findings indicate that G exposure may cause DNA damage and cancer in humans. Aim of this investigation was to study the cytotoxic and genotoxic properties of G and R (UltraMax) in a buccal epithelial cell line (TR146), as workers are exposed via inhalation to the herbicide. R induced acute cytotoxic effects at concentrations >40 mg/l after 20 min, which were due to membrane damage and impairment of mitochondrial functions. With G, increased release of extracellular lactate dehydrogenase indicative for membrane damage was observed at doses >80 mg/l. Both G and R induced DNA migration in single-cell gel electrophoresis assays at doses >20 mg/l. Furthermore, an increase of nuclear aberrations that reflect DNA damage was observed. The frequencies of micronuclei and nuclear buds were elevated after 20-min exposure to 10-20 mg/l, while nucleoplasmatic bridges were only enhanced by R at the highest dose (20 mg/l). R was under all conditions more active than its active principle (G). Comparisons with results of earlier studies with lymphocytes and cells from internal organs indicate that epithelial cells are more susceptible to the cytotoxic and DNA-damaging properties of the herbicide and its formulation. Since we found genotoxic effects after short exposure to concentrations that correspond to a 450-fold dilution of spraying used in agriculture, our findings indicate that inhalation may cause DNA damage in exposed individuals.
PMID: 22331240 (April 2012)