![]() ![]() The intense use of pesticides, mainly glyphosate, 2,4-D, and atrazine, constitutes an essential factor in the viability of this great agricultural productivity. In Brazil, agriculture is one of the most important economic pillars, making the country one of the largest consumers of pesticides around the world. Unfortunately, this increase is not associated with the supply of foodstuffs free of environmental pollutants. In this present book chapter, we summarize the harmful effects of pesticides and herbicides on crop plants and the different strategies evolved by plants to combat these emerging stress compounds to sustain growth and eventually survivability.ĭue to the increasing population worldwide, in recent years, an exponential increase in agricultural practices has occurred in order to attend to the growing demand for food. To combat these stress conditions, plants have evolved several biochemical, physiological, transcriptional, and epigenetic strategies that together help to maintain the growth and development of plants. The herbicides and pesticides cause several cytotoxic and genotoxic effects which ultimately challenge the stability of the plant genome through the production of reactive oxygen compounds. Moreover, the development of leaf and crop growth rate, and the nutritive composition of seeds, specifically the content of proteins, fall sharply following pesticide treatment. Thus, the pesticide and herbicide compounds have emerged as a new global concern owing to their several phytotoxic effects. ![]() In many developing countries cheap compounds, such as dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), and lindane are popular among farmers, even though they are environmentally persistent and have a toxic effect on soil flora and fauna. Over time, insects and weeds become adapted and develop resistance to such chemicals, which necessitates the excessive amount of usage and development of new chemical compounds to protect crops. As their mode of action is not species specific, they often harm other organisms including crops in the agricultural field when used in excess amounts. Pesticides and herbicides are designed to kill and prevent pests and unwanted weeds respectively. Pesticides are mainly categorized as herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides based on the target they killed. To enhance the constant supply of food for this large population and sustainable crop production, different types of agrochemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides were used by farmers for decades. The increase in the world’s population in the twentieth century resulted in the subsequent increase in the demand for food. We then discuss the effects of chronic oral pesticide exposure on the gut-microbiota-BBB axis and raise awareness of the danger of chronic exposure, especially during the perinatal period (pregnant women and offspring). In this review, we first consider the similarities/differences between these two physiological barriers and the different pathways that link the gut microbiota and the BBB to better understand the dialogue between bacteria and the brain. However, the interplay between pesticides, microbiota, the IB, and the BBB is still not fully explored. Preclinical observations reported a gut microbial alteration induced by pesticides, also known as dysbiosis, a condition associated not only with gastrointestinal disorders but also with diseases affecting other distal organs, such as the BBB. This axis describes the physiological and bidirectional connection between the microbiota, the intestinal barrier (IB), and the BBB. Accumulating evidence indicates that chronic exposure to a low level of pesticides found in diet affects the human gut-microbiota–blood–brain barrier (BBB) axis. ![]()
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