27/January/21

 

Glyphosate and the glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup disrupt the gut microbiome by the same mechanism by which the chemical acts as a weedkiller, and these effects happen even at low doses that regulators claim to be safe, a newly published study has found. The new study was conducted by an international team of scientists based in London, France, Italy, and the Netherlands, led by Dr Michael Antoniou of King’s College London. The study is the first to describe a mechanism by which glyphosate and Roundup affect the function of the gut microbiome (bacterial populations and biochemical function) in rats, the standard model that regulators use for assessing the human health risks of chemicals. The study found that glyphosate disrupts the rat gut microbiome through the same route by which it kills weeds. GMWatch

 

 

US Right to Know has covered the new study (above) in an article and a video interview by Carey Gillam with the researchers, Drs Michael Antoniou and Robin Mesnage. US Right to Know

 

 

Should humanity release genetically engineered gene drive organisms into nature? The response of a majority of citizens in eight European countries is: “No, the risks are too high”. This first opinion poll on the subject shows high levels of opposition to (46%-70%) and very low levels of support for (7%-16%) the use of Gene Drive technology in the environment. The survey of nearly 9,000 people is representative of 280 million EU citizens from eight EU countries. It was commissioned by nine NGOs demanding an informed and inclusive public debate and a global moratorium on the environmental release of this new type of GMO. The survey also reveals that a large proportion of respondents were still undecided (14%-27%) or did not know how to answer (1%-24%). GMWatch