article · Water Science & Technology Water Supply
Harmful cyanobacteria blooms caused by Microcystis aeruginosa can be suppressed using aqueous extracts from the aquatic plants Ranunculus aquatilis and Nasturtium officinale. Testing extracts at concentrations ranging from 0.1 percent to 1 percent demonstrated significant, concentration-dependent inhibition of cyanobacterial growth. After eight days of treatment, the highest inhibition reached 100 percent for Ranunculus aquatilis and 75.74 percent for Nasturtium officinale. The extracts reduced levels of photosynthetic pigments, specifically chlorophyll a and carotenoids, and caused alterations to cellular and colonial structure at the highest concentration, leading to cell sedimentation. Chemical profiling revealed that these inhibitory effects were linked to allelochemical compounds within the plants, specifically total polyphenols, flavonoids, and tannins. These findings indicate that both macrophyte species possess natural biocontrol properties capable of managing harmful algal blooms in lake reservoirs.
Harmful cyanobacterial blooms degrade water quality in lakes and reservoirs, threatening aquatic life and freshwater storage. Identifying natural plant extracts that suppress these blooms offers an environmentally sound biocontrol alternative to synthetic chemical treatments. Using allelopathic plants like Ranunculus aquatilis and Nasturtium officinale could help maintain healthier freshwater ecosystems and protect reservoir water supplies.
The findings point toward potential applications in biological bloom management, which could interest water utility operators, reservoir managers, and environmental remediation firms seeking green water treatments. However, this is early-stage laboratory research based on controlled culture testing. Moving toward practical application would require extensive scaling, formulation development, and field trials to verify stability, efficacy, and ecological safety in natural lake-reservoir environments.
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Abstract In recent years macrophytes have been considered promising tools in the biocontrol of harmful cyanobacteria blooms (cyanoHABs). In this study, the inhibitory effect of aqueous extracts of Ranunculus aquatilis and Nasturtium officinale on Microcystis aeruginosa growth was assessed via six treatments (0%, 0.1%, 0.25%, 0.50%, 0.75%, and 1% extracts). Chlorophyll a and carotenoid content were analyzed and changes in cell and colonial morphology of M. aeruginosa cultures were observed. Also, to reveal potential allelochemical compounds, total phenols (TPs), total flavonoids (TFs), and tannins (TTs) were analyzed in both extracts. The obtained results showed that M. aeruginosa growth was significantly inhibited by R. aquatilis and N. officinale aqueous extracts in a concentration-dependent way. After 8 days of treatment, the highest inhibition rates reached 100% and 75.74% respectively. The Chlorophyll a and carotenoid concentrations were decreased compared to the control group. Colonial and cell and colonial morphology changes were observed under the treatment group with 1% of aqueous extract accompanied by sedimentation of the cyanobacterial cells. This study shows that M. aeruginosa growth inhibition was induced by the total polyphenol, flavonoids and tannins. It was concluded that theses macrophytes may control M. aeruginosa and may be useful to control harmful blooms in lake-reservoirs.
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DOI: 10.2166/ws.2018.072
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