Aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) is a aminophosphonate with a weak phosphonic acid group.
Application AMPA apparently can be used as biocide and pesticide. AMPA is also used in research to assess the exposure of glyphosate.
Environmental fate AMPA is one of the primary degradation products of the herbicide glyphosate.Environmental Fate of Glyphosate , Jeff Schuette, Department of Pesticide Regulation, California In addition, it is a degradation product of other aminophosphonates, which have applications as antiscalant and water treatment.
AMPA was found in the final effluent of some wastewater treatment plants at concentrations of up to 10μg/l. AMPA can be detected after membrane filtration. AMPA has the potential to be broken down further by manganese oxide in laboratory conditions, however in soil manganese oxide is usually only present in trace amounts.K. A. Barrett and M. B. McBride. Oxidative Degradation of Glyphosate and Aminomethylphosphonate by Manganese Oxide. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2005, 39 (23), pp 9223–9228 Microbial degradation of AMPA is the more likely degradation pathway, where it degrades into phosphoric acidPipke R, Amrhein N. (1988) Isolation and characterization of a mutant of Arthrobacter sp. strain GLP-1 which utilizes the herbicide glyphosate as its sole source of phosphorus and nitrogen. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 54(11): 2868-2870. Forlani G, Mangiagalli A, Nielsen E, Suardi CM. (1999) Degradation of the phosphonate herbicide glyphosate in soil: Evidence for a possible involvement of unculturable microorganisms. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 31: 991-997 and ultimately to carbon dioxide and inorganic phosphate.Backgrounder: Glyphosate does not degrade to phosphorous acid in the environment. Monsanto. 2005
Toxicity AMPA is likely the major toxic metabolite of glyphosate and it is therefore considered to be of similar toxicological concern (harmful in greater than 0.5 parts per million) as glyphosate itself.Pesticide Residues in Food - 1997, FAO Panel of Experts on Pesticide Residues in Food and the Environment and the WHO Core Assessment Group
References
External links Concentrations of Glyphosate, Its Degradation Product, Aminomethylphosphonic Acid, and Glufosinate in Ground- and Surface-Water, Rainfall, and Soil Samples Collected in the United States, 2001-06, United States Geological Survey