Glyphosate exposition induce atresia in ovarian follicles of adult mice and neonates
Keywords:
Herbicide, reproductive toxicity, teratogenic effect, follicular degeneration, embryonic exposureAbstract
Glyphosate-based herbicides have negative impacts on the development of the female reproductive system and there is little information on the effects at different stages of the female reproductive life, especially on the integrity of ovarian follicles. Thus, the present study aimed to determine whether glyphosate affects the morphology of ovarian follicles in pregnant mice and their offspring. Female mice (n=6), 8 weeks old, mated with male mice (n=3). After confirmation of pregnancy, the females were equally divided into two groups: Control (CTRL) and Glyphosate at a concentration of 30 mg/kg (M30). Female offspring from the M30 group
were also evaluated to observe potential alterations resulting from herbicide exposure (M30f). Follicles were quantified and classified based on morphological integrity and follicular category by classical histology analyses. Data were expressed as mean ± standard error of the mean and subjected to the Student's t-test for comparison between groups (CTRL and M30). Differences were considered significant at p<0.05. The results showed a significant increase in the number of degenerated follicles in the ovaries of animals from the M30 group compared to the CTRL group (p<0.05). In offspring exposed to the herbicide during the embryonic phase (M30f), 302 follicles were counted, of which 41.39% were degenerated. It is concluded that female mice exposed to a concentration of 30 mg/kg of glyphosate during adulthood or intrauterine life experience compromised ovarian morphological integrity, leading to an increase in the number of atretic follicles, both in the mothers and their offspring.
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