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Molecular, Microbial, and Ecological Drivers of Duckweed Phytoremediation in Aquatic Environments
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This review pulls together existing research on duckweed, a tiny floating plant that — with help from the bacteria living on it — can soak up toxic pollutants like heavy metals, pesticides, and microplastics from contaminated water. This matters because 80% of the world's wastewater goes untreated, and duckweed offers a cheap, natural cleanup option, though scientists still need to figure out how to safely handle the pollutant-laden plants afterward so contaminants don't just end up back in the environment or food chain.
Aquatic ecosystems are under severe stress from a diverse combination of contaminants, including heavy metals, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and microplastics, driven by rapid industrialization, intensive agriculture, and urbanization. Globally, 80% of wastewater remains untreated, and conventional systems often fail to address emerging contaminants. Consequently, toxic heavy metals like lead and mercury can persist in water sources for decades. In response, phytoremediation has emerged as a scalable, eco-friendly, nature-based alternative. Among phytoremediation agents, duckweeds are increasingly recognized for their rapid growth, simple morphology, and continuous water-column contact. This review outlines the landscape of duckweed-based remediation, detailing molecular detoxification pathways and the synergistic role of associated microbiomes in enhancing environmental cleanup. Evidence indicates that contaminant removal is often supported by plant-microbe interactions. Despite extensive laboratory validation, field-scale implementation remains constrained by environmental complexity, pollutant mixtures, and variable climatic conditions. Furthermore, while duckweed systems hold promise within circular bioeconomy frameworks, converting wastewater into nutrient-rich biomass, contaminant accumulation in plant tissues raises concerns about biomass utilization and contaminant carryover. Addressing these challenges requires an integrative approach that links molecular detoxification, ecological interactions, and engineered system design to realize the full potential of duckweeds for sustainable aquatic pollution management.
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Phytoremediation potential of Lemna minor for removal of microplastics from aquatic environment
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Researchers investigated how the aquatic plant duckweed (Lemna minor) interacts with polyethylene microplastics, finding that the plant physically binds microplastics to its surface over time. The findings suggest duckweed has potential as a low-cost phytoremediation tool for removing microplastics from contaminated water.
Biochemical and physiological insights into Lemna minor as a remediator of multi metal–microplastic contaminated waters
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This 42-day experiment tested how common duckweed (Lemna minor) responds to water contaminated with multiple heavy metals and polyethylene microplastics, finding that combined exposure severely stunted growth, depleted chlorophyll, and triggered major oxidative stress. Despite the damage, duckweed accumulated high concentrations of both heavy metals and microplastics in its tissue, suggesting potential for phytoremediation of contaminated water. Understanding how plants cope with — and absorb — these combined pollutants is important for both ecological risk assessment and developing water cleanup strategies.
Long-term interactions between microplastics and floating macrophyte Lemna minor: The potential for phytoremediation of microplastics in the aquatic environment
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Researchers studied whether the floating aquatic plant Lemna minor could be used to remove microplastics from water through a 12-week experiment. The plant tolerated high concentrations of polyethylene microplastics without significant health effects after an initial adjustment period, and the particles adhered readily to the plant biomass. The findings suggest that duckweed-based systems could offer a nature-based approach for capturing microplastics from contaminated waterways.
Identification Of The Microplastic Accumulation Potential in Lemna Minor Plant
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Researchers incubated common duckweed (Lemna minor) in Citarum River water for 14 days and found peak microplastic absorption between days 5–7, with the plant removing up to 6% of particles per gram of biomass and preferentially accumulating fiber-shaped particles in the 1–3 mm size range.
The Response of Duckweed Lemna minor to Microplastics and Its Potential Use as a Bioindicator of Microplastic Pollution
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Researchers tested duckweed Lemna minor as a bioindicator for freshwater microplastic pollution by exposing it to polyethylene microbeads, tire wear particles, PET fibers, and natural particles. Polyethylene microbeads adhered to duckweed at 10 times the rate of other particles and reduced root length, suggesting duckweed could serve as a practical monitor for the dominant polyethylene microplastics in freshwater.
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