Glyphosate impairs learning in Aedes aegypti mosquito larvae a field-realistic doses

Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the world. Over the past few years, the number of studies revealing deleterious effects of glyphosate on non-target species has been increasing. Here, we studied the impact of glyphosate at field-realistic doses on learning in mosquito larvae (Aedes aegypti). Larvae of A. aegypti live in small bodies of water and perform a stereotyped escape response when a moving object projects its shadow on the water surface. Repeated presentations of an innocuous visual stimulus induce a decrease in response due to habituation, a non-associative form of leaming. In this study, different groups of larvae were reared in water containing different concentrations of glyphosate that are commonly found in the field (50 mu g l(-1),100 mu g l(-1), 210 mu g l(-1) and 2 mu g l(-1)). Larvae reared in a glyphosate solution of 2 mg l(-1) (application dose) could complete their development. However, glyphosate at a concentration of 100 mu g l(-1) impaired habituation. A dose-dependent deleterious effect on leaming ability was observed. This protocol opens new avenues to further studies aimed at understanding how glyphosate affects non-target organisms, such as insects. Habituation in mosquito larvae could serve as a parameter for testing the impact of pollutants in the water.