TY - JOUR
T1 - Transcriptome profiling of the fungus Aspergillus nidulans exposed to a commercial glyphosate-based herbicide under conditions of apparent herbicide tolerance
AU - Mesnage, Robin
AU - Oestreicher, Nathalie
AU - Poirier, Florence
AU - Nicolas, Valérie
AU - Boursier, Céline
AU - Vélot, Christian
PY - 2020/3
Y1 - 2020/3
N2 - Glyphosate-based herbicides, such as Roundup®, are the most widely used non-selective, broad-spectrum herbicides. The release of these compounds in large amounts into the environment is susceptible to affect soil quality and health, especially because of the non-target effects on a large range of organisms including soil microorganisms. The soil filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, a well-characterized experimental model organism that can be used as a bio-indicator for agricultural soil health, has been previously shown to be highly affected by Roundup GT Plus (R450: 450 g/L of glyphosate) at concentrations far below recommended agricultural application rate, including at a dose that does not cause any macroscopic effect. In this study, we determined alterations in the transcriptome of A. nidulans when exposed to R450 at a dose corresponding to the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for macroscopic parameters. A total of 1816 distinct genes had their expression altered. The most affected biological functions were protein synthesis, amino acids and secondary metabolisms, stress response, as well as detoxification pathways through cytochromes P450, glutathione-S-transferases, and ABC transporters. These results partly explain the molecular mechanisms underlying alterations in growth parameters detected at higher concentrations for this ascomycete fungus. In conclusion, our results highlight molecular disturbances in a soil fungus under conditions of apparent tolerance to the herbicide, and thus confirm the need to question the principle of “substantial equivalence” when applied to plants made tolerant to herbicides.
AB - Glyphosate-based herbicides, such as Roundup®, are the most widely used non-selective, broad-spectrum herbicides. The release of these compounds in large amounts into the environment is susceptible to affect soil quality and health, especially because of the non-target effects on a large range of organisms including soil microorganisms. The soil filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, a well-characterized experimental model organism that can be used as a bio-indicator for agricultural soil health, has been previously shown to be highly affected by Roundup GT Plus (R450: 450 g/L of glyphosate) at concentrations far below recommended agricultural application rate, including at a dose that does not cause any macroscopic effect. In this study, we determined alterations in the transcriptome of A. nidulans when exposed to R450 at a dose corresponding to the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for macroscopic parameters. A total of 1816 distinct genes had their expression altered. The most affected biological functions were protein synthesis, amino acids and secondary metabolisms, stress response, as well as detoxification pathways through cytochromes P450, glutathione-S-transferases, and ABC transporters. These results partly explain the molecular mechanisms underlying alterations in growth parameters detected at higher concentrations for this ascomycete fungus. In conclusion, our results highlight molecular disturbances in a soil fungus under conditions of apparent tolerance to the herbicide, and thus confirm the need to question the principle of “substantial equivalence” when applied to plants made tolerant to herbicides.
KW - Apparent herbicide tolerance
KW - Aspergillus nidulans
KW - Glyphosate-based herbicide
KW - Substantial equivalence
KW - Transcriptomics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85077922021&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109116
DO - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109116
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85077922021
SN - 0013-9351
VL - 182
JO - Environmental Research
JF - Environmental Research
M1 - 109116
ER -