Evolution, Biology, Ecology and Uses of Azolla
A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Ecology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 37
Special Issue Editors
Interests: Azolla; endosymbiosis; nitrogen fixation; carbon sequestration; phytoremediation; harmful algal bloom control; dinoflagellate biostratigraphy; palaeoecology; nature-based solutions; arctic palaeoceanography
Interests: cyanobacterial symbiosis; Azolla; secondary metabolites; biological activities; phylogeny; biofertilizers; agriculture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
2. Department of Earth Sciences, Marine Palynology and Paleoceanography Group, Laboratory of Palaeobotany and Palynology, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Princetonlaan 8a, 3584 CB Utrecht, The Netherlands
Interests: marine geology; paleoceanography; paleoclimatology; micropaleontology; marine palynology; dinoflagellate cysts
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Azolla is a small, free-floating freshwater fern that is distinguished from other plants by its permanent symbiosis with the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Nostoc azollae (also known as Anabaena azollae). This unique symbiosis originated in the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of North America, when whole-genome duplication (WGD) of Azolla's ancestor enabled transmission of the cyanobacteria via the plant’s megaspores. Over the following 80 million years, the two symbionts underwent additional genetic alterations that changed the cyanobacteria from free-living organisms into obligate endosymbionts, with other modifications increasing their nitrogen fixation and Azolla's rapid growth. This resulted in the 'Arctic Azolla Event' when Azolla repeatedly spread across the Arctic Ocean surface 49 million years ago, sequestering large amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide and initiating the transition from a greenhouse to icehouse climate.
Azolla has been cultivated for hundreds of years in India and East Asia as a renewable low-cost biofertilizer and feed for farmed animals, birds and fish. It is also increasingly studied for its biofuel, biochar and food production, removal of excess nitrogen and phosphorus from water and soil, suppression of harmful cyanobacterial (blue-green algal) blooms, and carbon capture and storage (CCS). These applications are urgently needed with today's climate change and growing human population, making this Special Issue on the Evolution, Biology, Ecology and Uses of Azolla significant and timely.
This Special Issue of Plants invites original research and review articles addressing all aspects of Azolla, including its evolution, genetics, biology, ecology, phytoremediation, agricultural applications, and food security.
Dr. Jonathan Bujak
Dr. Ana Luisa Pereira
Prof. Dr. Henk Brinkhuis
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 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
- Azolla
- Nostoc azollae
- nitrogen fixation
- phytoremediation
- cyanobacterial blooms
- climate mitigation
- sustainable agriculture
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