Degradation products of a phenylurea herbicide, diuron: synthesis, ecotoxicity, and biotransformation.
The degradation products of diuron (photoproducts and metabolites), already described in the literature, were synthesized in order to carry out further investigations. Their ecotoxicity was determined using the standardized Microtox test, and most of the derivatives presented a nontarget toxicity higher than that of diuron. Therefore, the biotransformation of these compounds was tested with four fungal strains and a bacterial strain, which were known to be efficient for diuron transformation. With the exception of the 3,4-dichlorophenylurea, all the degradation products underwent other transformations with most of the strains tested, but no mineralization was observed. For many of them, the biodegradation compound for which the toxicity was important was 3,4-dichlorophenylurea. This study underlines the importance of knowing the nature of the degradation products, which has to be kept in mind while analyzing natural water samples or soil samples.
Tixier
C
C
Synthèse et Etude de Systèmes à Intérêt Biologique, UMR 6504, Université Blaise Pascal, 63177 Aubière, France.
Sancelme
M
M
Bonnemoy
F
F
Cuer
A
A
Veschambre
H
H
D001419:Bacteria; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D004237:Diuron / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D005658:Fungi; D006540:Herbicides; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds; D018675:Toxicity Tests; D014733:Vibrio / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
D006540:Herbicides; D010671:Phenylurea Compounds; D004237:Diuron