Glyphosate characteristics include:

• A. It is non selective
• B. It is an EPSP inhibitor
• C. It is selective only in Roundup Ready crops
• D. All of the above

Answer: (D)

Glyphosate works as a broad-spectrum herbicide by blocking a plant enzyme called EPSP synthase in the shikimate pathway, which stops the production of essential aromatic amino acids and leads to plant death. Because this pathway is present in most plants, glyphosate is non-selective in crops that aren’t glyphosate-tolerant—it will kill both weeds and the crop.

The twist comes with Roundup Ready crops, which carry a glyphosate-insensitive version of EPSP synthase. This genetic modification lets the crop survive glyphosate applications while the weeds are killed, making the herbicide effectively selective in fields planted with these tolerant crops. So glyphosate is non-selective in general, inhibits EPSP synthase, and becomes selective only in systems using Roundup Ready crops. That’s why all the statements describe glyphosate’s characteristics.