In vitro effects of glyphosate-based herbicides and related adjuvants on primary culture of hemocytes from Haliotis tuberculata

Glyphosate-based herbicides are among the most produced and widely-used herbicides.&nbsp;Studies have shown that commercial formulations and adjuvants may be more toxic to non-target organisms than the active ingredients alone, but the mechanisms of action of these&nbsp;chemicals remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro effects of&nbsp;glyphosate, a commercial formulation and adjuvant alone using primary culture of hemocytes&nbsp;from the European abalone <em>Haliotis tuberculata</em>, a commonly farmed shellfish. Glyphosate&nbsp;was found to have negligible effects on viability, phagocytic activities and lysosome stability&nbsp;even with very high doses (i.e. 100 mg L^-1). By contrast, greater effects on viability were&nbsp;observed for the commercial formulation and adjuvant alone, with EC₅₀ values of 41.42 mg L^-1 and 1.85 mg L^-1, respectively. These results demonstrate that the toxic sublethal effects (i.e.&nbsp;phagocytic activity and destabilization of lysosomal membranes) of formulated glyphosate<br>
came from adjuvants and suggest they may be related to cell and organelle membrane&nbsp;destabilization.