Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms
Duckweeds (Lemnaceae) are small, simply constructed aquatic higher plants that grow on or just below the surface of quiet waters. They consist primarily of leaf-like assimilatory organs, or fronds, that reproduce mainly by vegetative replication. Despite their diminutive size and inornate habit, duc...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Plants |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/11/2215 |
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| author | Paul Ziegler Klaus J. Appenroth K. Sowjanya Sree |
| author_facet | Paul Ziegler Klaus J. Appenroth K. Sowjanya Sree |
| author_sort | Paul Ziegler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Duckweeds (Lemnaceae) are small, simply constructed aquatic higher plants that grow on or just below the surface of quiet waters. They consist primarily of leaf-like assimilatory organs, or fronds, that reproduce mainly by vegetative replication. Despite their diminutive size and inornate habit, duckweeds have been able to colonize and maintain themselves in almost all of the world’s climate zones. They are thereby subject to multiple adverse influences during the growing season, such as high temperatures, extremes of light intensity and pH, nutrient shortage, damage by microorganisms and herbivores, the presence of harmful substances in the water, and competition from other aquatic plants, and they must also be able to withstand winter cold and drought that can be lethal to the fronds. This review discusses the means by which duckweeds come to grips with these adverse influences to ensure their survival. Important duckweed attributes in this regard are a pronounced potential for rapid growth and frond replication, a juvenile developmental status facilitating adventitious organ formation, and clonal diversity. Duckweeds have specific features at their disposal for coping with particular environmental difficulties and can also cooperate with other organisms of their surroundings to improve their survival chances. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:59:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4587fe3868f24dc5ba47997658c558f8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:59:27Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj.art-4587fe3868f24dc5ba47997658c558f82023-11-18T08:24:54ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472023-06-011211221510.3390/plants12112215Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest AngiospermsPaul Ziegler0Klaus J. Appenroth1K. Sowjanya Sree2Department of Plant Physiology, University of Bayreuth, 95440 Bayreuth, GermanyMatthias Schleiden Institute—Plant Physiology, University of Jena, 07743 Jena, GermanyDepartment of Environmental Science, Central University of Kerala, Periye 671320, IndiaDuckweeds (Lemnaceae) are small, simply constructed aquatic higher plants that grow on or just below the surface of quiet waters. They consist primarily of leaf-like assimilatory organs, or fronds, that reproduce mainly by vegetative replication. Despite their diminutive size and inornate habit, duckweeds have been able to colonize and maintain themselves in almost all of the world’s climate zones. They are thereby subject to multiple adverse influences during the growing season, such as high temperatures, extremes of light intensity and pH, nutrient shortage, damage by microorganisms and herbivores, the presence of harmful substances in the water, and competition from other aquatic plants, and they must also be able to withstand winter cold and drought that can be lethal to the fronds. This review discusses the means by which duckweeds come to grips with these adverse influences to ensure their survival. Important duckweed attributes in this regard are a pronounced potential for rapid growth and frond replication, a juvenile developmental status facilitating adventitious organ formation, and clonal diversity. Duckweeds have specific features at their disposal for coping with particular environmental difficulties and can also cooperate with other organisms of their surroundings to improve their survival chances.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/11/2215abiotic stressbiotic stressduckweedLemnaceaeturion |
| spellingShingle | Paul Ziegler Klaus J. Appenroth K. Sowjanya Sree Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms Plants abiotic stress biotic stress duckweed Lemnaceae turion |
| title | Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms |
| title_full | Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms |
| title_fullStr | Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms |
| title_full_unstemmed | Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms |
| title_short | Survival Strategies of Duckweeds, the World’s Smallest Angiosperms |
| title_sort | survival strategies of duckweeds the world s smallest angiosperms |
| topic | abiotic stress biotic stress duckweed Lemnaceae turion |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/11/2215 |
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