Aquatic Macrophytes and Pollutants: Interactions, Indicator Role, and Phytoremediation Possibilities

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Water Quality and Contamination".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 May 2024 | Viewed by 621

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Ecology, Biogeochemistry and Environmental Protection, University of Wrocław, 50-328 Wrocław, Poland
Interests: aquatic plants; trace metals; microplastics; bioindication; aquatic pollution; ecotoxicology
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Guest Editor
Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, Sl-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: macrophytes; bioindication; environmental parameters; rivers; lakes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aquatic pollution is amongst the most pressing global issues today. Aquatic macrophytes can survive in polluted habitats to a certain extent and respond to different pollutants in various ways. They constitute the largest amount of biomass in aquatic ecosystems and are often the first organisms affected by pollution as well as being responsible for introducing toxic substances into the food chain. The species with bioaccumulation abilities are useful phytoremediation agents, while those that exhibit a proportional dose–response have applications in biomonitoring and bioindication.

The aim of this Special Issue is to provide a platform to promote, share, and discuss new scientific evidence on the interactions between aquatic macrophytes and pollutants, their environmental consequences, and possible applications. We welcome papers addressing topics including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Impacts of pollution and water quality on the performance of aquatic plants;
  • Uptake, sorption mechanisms and accumulation of pollutants in macrohydrophytes;
  • Distribution of pollutants in aquatic plant tissues and communities;
  • The application of aquatic plants in biomonitoring, bioindication, and phytoremediation.

Dr. Ludmiła Polechońska
Prof. Dr. Mateja Germ
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aquatic plants
  • primary producers
  • environmental contamination
  • metals
  • organic pollutants
  • microplastics
  • bioaccumulation
  • remediation
  • biomonitoring
  • bioindication

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

17 pages, 3523 KiB  
Article
Mercury Bioconcentration and Translocation in Rooted Macrophytes (Paspalum repens Berg.) from Floodplain Lakes in the Araguaia River Watershed, Brazilian Savanna
by Lucas Cabrera Monteiro, Ludgero Cardoso Galli Vieira, José Vicente Elias Bernardi, Ygor Oliveira Sarmento Rodrigues, Lígia Pereira Borges de Mesquita, João Pedro Rudrigues de Souza, Guilherme Sena, Iuri Aparecida da Silva Oliveira, Cássio da Silva Cabral, José Francisco Gonçalves Júnior, Jurandir Rodrigues de Souza and Wanderley Rodrigues Bastos
Water 2024, 16(9), 1199; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16091199 - 23 Apr 2024
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Abstract
Macrophytes are fundamental photosynthetic organisms for functioning freshwater ecosystems, identified as potential bioindicators of mercury (Hg) in the environment. We quantified the concentrations of total Hg (THg) in water and macrophytes (Paspalum repens Berg.) from 17 lakes on the Araguaia River floodplain, [...] Read more.
Macrophytes are fundamental photosynthetic organisms for functioning freshwater ecosystems, identified as potential bioindicators of mercury (Hg) in the environment. We quantified the concentrations of total Hg (THg) in water and macrophytes (Paspalum repens Berg.) from 17 lakes on the Araguaia River floodplain, aiming to compare the bioconcentration factor (BCF) in the aerial tissues and roots; evaluate the translocation factor (TF) between plant tissues; and assess the influence of environmental factors and land use on THg concentrations in water and macrophytes. The BCF was significantly higher in roots (1.29 ± 0.32) than in aerial tissues (0.41 ± 0.34), with low TF between plant tissues (0.14 ± 0.06). The highest concentrations of THg in water were determined in lakes with higher land use intensity and a pH close to neutral, indicating the transport of particulate-bound Hg and the immobilization in the water column. In contrast, wetlands were priority areas for the bioconcentration of THg in macrophytes, associated with sulfate, dissolved oxygen, and oxidation–reduction potential in the water. Thus, although P. repens is not a suitable bioindicator of Hg mobilization by anthropogenic land use in our study area, our results suggest the potential of macrophytes as bioindicators of sites that are favorable to Hg methylation. Full article
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