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Glyphosate differentially affects the allergic immune response across generations in mice
Lisa Buchenauer1, Kristin M Junge2, Sven-Bastiaan Haange3
1Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ, Department of Environmental Immunology, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Dermatology, Venerology and Allergology, Leipzig University Medical Center, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
The Science of the Total Environment
|August 13, 2022
Summary
Low-dose maternal exposure to the pesticide glyphosate may suppress the allergic immune response in offspring. This effect, potentially linked to gut bacteria changes, was observed in the first generation but not the second.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Immunology
- Toxicology
Background:
- Environmental pollutants, including pesticides like glyphosate, can negatively impact immune system development, especially during early life stages.
- While high occupational glyphosate exposure is linked to immune dysfunction and asthma, the effects of common, low-dose exposure across generations remain unstudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of maternal oral exposure to low-dose glyphosate on airway inflammation and allergic immune responses in a multi-generational mouse model.
- To assess effects in the exposed dams (F0) and their offspring across two subsequent generations (F1 and F2).
Main Methods:
- A multi-generational murine asthma model was used to study the effects of oral glyphosate exposure (0.5 and 50 mg/kg/day).
- Airway inflammation, cytokine production (TH1, TH2, TH17), allergen-specific IgE levels, and gut microbiota composition were analyzed in dams and offspring (F1 and F2).
Main Results:
- Maternal exposure to 50 mg/kg glyphosate caused mild eosinophilic infiltration and TH2 cytokine production in dams.
- Low-dose (0.5 mg/kg) maternal glyphosate exposure led to reduced lung inflammation, HDM-specific IgE, and asthma-related cytokine production in female F1 offspring, indicating a general immunosuppressive effect.
- This dampened immune response was not observed in the F2 generation, and F1 offspring exhibited altered gut microbiota composition.
Conclusions:
- Low-dose maternal glyphosate exposure may induce a transgenerational immunosuppressive effect on the allergic immune response in F1 offspring, potentially mediated by gut microbiota alterations.
- Further research is warranted to understand the implications for infectious disease defense and cancer pathology.
