Roundup, but Not Roundup-Ready Corn, Increases Mortality of .

Genetically modified foods have become pervasive in diets of people living in the US. By far the most common genetically modified foods either tolerate herbicide application (HT) or produce endogenous insecticide (Bt). To determine whether these toxicological effects result from genetic modification , or from the increase in herbicide or insecticide residues present on the food, we exposed fruit flies, , to food containing HT corn that had been sprayed with the glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup, HT corn that had not been sprayed with Roundup, or Roundup in a variety of known glyphosate concentrations and formulations. While neither lifespan nor reproductive behaviors were affected by HT corn, addition of Roundup increased mortality with an LC of 7.1 g/L for males and 11.4 g/L for females after 2 days of exposure. Given the many genetic tools available, are an excellent model system for future studies about genetic and biochemical mechanisms of glyphosate toxicity.