Interactions between glyphosate and autochthonous soil fungi surviving in aqueous solution of glyphosate

The survival of autochthonous fungi in soil treated with 1 mM aqueous solution of glyphosate was investigated. Significant differences in the total number of fungi in the studied objects were observed, and additionally significant qualitative changes were encountered. The dominating group of fungi belonged to genus Fusarium: Fusarium solani H30, Fusarium solani H50 and Fusarium oxysporum H80. Interactions between the isolated strains of fungi and varying concentrations of glyphosate were determined. The studied strains possessed high tolerance against the applied doses of glyphosate (0.5–2.0 mM). In the presence of glyphosate (as a sole source of phosphorus) applied in concentrations of 1.0–1.5 mM the increase in dry mass of the tested fungi was highly significant. In the presence of glyphosate the phenotypic changes of studied strains were observed as was shown as the presence of colorants being indicators of such changes. Thus, their color and intensity depended on the age, pH and species present in the culture. The degradation of glyphosate by studied fungi was determined by means of TLC. Two types of compounds were formed. One of them (Rf = 0.21–0.35) contained free amino group but was not either glycine nor AMPA. Survival of Fusarium in soil environment is potentially dangerous.