Glyphosate exposures and kidney injury biomarkers in infants and young children

Leonardo Trasande, Sandra India Aldana, Howard Trachtman, Kurunthachalam Kannan, Deborah Morrison, Dimitri A. Christakis, Kathryn Whitlock, Mary Jo Messito, Rachel S. Gross, Rajendiran Karthikraj, Sheela Sathyanarayana

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

59 Scopus citations

Abstract

The goal of this study was to assess biomarkers of exposure to glyphosate and assess potential associations with renal function in children. Glyphosate is used ubiquitously in agriculture worldwide. While previous studies have indicated that glyphosate may have nephrotoxic effects, few have examined potential effects on kidney function in children. We leveraged three cohorts across different phases of child development and measured urinary levels of glyphosate. We evaluated associations of glyphosate with three biomarkers of kidney injury: albuminuria (ACR), neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), and kidney injury marker 1 (KIM-1). Multivariable regression analyses examined associations of glyphosate with kidney injury biomarkers controlling for covariates. We identified glyphosate in 11.1% of the total participants. The herbicide was detected more frequently in the neonate population (30%). Multivariable regression models failed to identify significant associations of log-transformed glyphosate with any of the kidney injury biomarkers, controlling for covariates age, sex, and maternal education. While we confirm detectability of glyphosate in children's urine at various ages and stages of life, there is no evidence in this study for renal injury in children exposed to low levels of glyphosate. Further studies of larger sample size are indicated to better understand putative deleterious effects of the herbicide after different levels of exposure. Glyphosate is detectable is the urine of 11% of infants and young children (30% of neonates). However, there is no association with albuminuria or biomarkers of renal tubular injury.

Original languageEnglish
Article number113334
JournalEnvironmental Pollution
Volume256
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2020
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Children
  • Environmental exposures
  • Glyphosate
  • Nephrotoxicity
  • Renal biomarkers

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