Open AccessLife cycle fitness differences in D aphnia magna fed R oundup‐ R eady soybean or conventional soybean or organic soybean
Author(s) -
Cuhra M.,
Traavik T.,
Bøhn T.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
aquaculture nutrition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.941
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1365-2095
pISSN - 1353-5773
DOI - 10.1111/anu.12199
Subject(s) - biology , fecundity , soybean meal , glyphosate , daphnia magna , soybean oil , organism , pesticide , crop , agriculture , agronomy , microbiology and biotechnology , food science , ecology , raw material , population , paleontology , chemistry , demography , organic chemistry , toxicity , sociology
A lifelong feeding study with soybean from different production systems was carried out in the crustacean D aphnia magna (water flea), an acknowledged model organism for ecotoxicological studies. Experimental diets were prepared with soybean meal from different agriculture production systems: (i) genetically modified R oundup‐ R eady soy ( G lyphosate‐ T olerant), (ii) conventional soy and (iii) soy from organic agriculture (agriculture with neither synthetic pesticides nor synthetic fertilizers). Overall, feed produced from organic soybeans resulted in the highest fitness (higher survival, better growth and fecundity) in the model organism. Animals fed R oundup‐ R eady soybean consistently performed less well compared to animals fed either conventional or organic soybeans. We conclude that accumulation of herbicide residues in R oundup‐ R eady soy and related nutritional differences between the soy types may have caused the observed fitness differences. The results accentuate the need for further research clarifying qualitative aspects, including potential large‐scale consequences for food and feed quality, of this dominant crop.