title: Fenamiphos and related organophosphorus pesticides: environmental fate and toxicology.
abstract: In this review, we emphasize recent research on the fate, transport, and metabolism of tree selected organophosphorus pesticides (fenamiphos, isofenphos, and coumaphos) in soil an water environments. This review is also concerned with the side effects of these pesticides on nontarget organisms. Despite the fact that fenamiphos is not very mobile, its oxides have been detected in the groundwaters of Western Australia. Most organophosphorus pesticides generally are chemically unstable and underfo microbial degradation in soil and water environments. Enhanced biodegradation of many organophosphorus pesticides upon their repeted applications to soil and water is well established. Myriads of soil microorganisms, bacteria in particular, exhibit an exceptional capacity to transform many organophosphorus pesticides. Fenamiphos can undergo rapid microbially mediated degradation via oxidation to its oxides (sulfoxide and sulfone) and eventually to CO2 and water in soils, or via hydrolysis, in cultures of the soil bacterium, Brevinbacterium sp. There is evidence for enhanced biodegradation of (i) isofenphos in soils with a long history of use and (ii) coumaphos in cattle dip by bacterial cultures to chlorferon and diethylthiophosphoric acid.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Environmental Risk Assessment and Remediation, Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, 5095 SA, Australia.
authors.forename: Tanya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Cáceres
authors.forename: Mallavarapu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Megharaj
authors.forename: Kadiyala
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Venkateswarlu
authors.forename: Nambrattil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sethunathan
authors.forename: Ravi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Naidu
mesh_terms: D054750:Ecotoxicology; D004777:Environment; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D009943:Organophosphorus Compounds / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D009943:Organophosphorus Compounds; D010575:Pesticides; C002698:fenamiphos