Nitrofen is an

herbicide Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page fo ...

of the diphenyl ether class. Because of concerns about its

carcinogen A carcinogen is any substance, radionuclide, or radiation that promotes carcinogenesis (the formation of cancer). This may be due to the ability to damage the genome or to the disruption of cellular metabolic processes. Several radioactive substan ...

icity, the use of nitrofen has been banned in the European Union and in the United States since 1996. It has been superseded by related

protoporphyrinogen oxidase Protoporphyrinogen oxidase or protox is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''PPOX'' gene. Protoporphyrinogen oxidase is responsible for the seventh step in biosynthesis of protoporphyrin IX. This porphyrin is the precursor to hemoglobin, ...

enzyme inhibitors An enzyme inhibitor is a molecule that binds to an enzyme and blocks its activity. Enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions necessary for life, in which substrate molecules are converted into products. An enzyme facilitates a s ...

including

acifluorfen Acifluorfen is the ISO common name for an organic compound used as an herbicide. It acts by inhibiting the enzyme protoporphyrinogen oxidase which is necessary for chlorophyll synthesis. Soybeans naturally have a high tolerance to acifluorfen ...

and

fomesafen Fomesafen is the ISO common name for an organic compound used as an herbicide. It acts by inhibiting the enzyme protoporphyrinogen oxidase which is necessary for chlorophyll synthesis. Soybeans naturally have a high tolerance to fomesafen, via ...

. In 2002, Nitrofen was detected in organic feed, organic eggs, and organic poultry products in Germany prompting a scandal which caused a decline in all organic meat sales in Europe. Nitrofen is listed as an IARC Group 2B carcinogen, meaning it is "possibly carcinogenic to humans".IARC Monographs - Classifications - by Group
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References

External links

* {{organohalide-stub Herbicides Phenol ethers Nitro compounds Chloroarenes IARC Group 2B carcinogens