Potable and good-quality drinking water availability is a serious global concern, since several pollution sources significantly contribute to low water quality. Amongst these pollution sources, several are releasing an array of hazardous agents into various environmental and water matrices. Unfortunately, there are not very many ecologically friendly systems available to treat the contaminated environment exclusively. Consequently, heavy metal water contamination leads to many diseases in humans, such as cardiopulmonary diseases and cytotoxicity, among others. To solve this problem, there are a plethora of emerging technologies that play an important role in defining treatment strategies. Phytoremediation, the usage of plants to remove contaminants, is a technology that has been widely used to remediate pollution in soils, with particular reference to toxic elements. Thus, hydroponic systems coupled with bioremediation for the removal of water contaminants have shown great relevance. In this review, we addressed several studies that support the development of phytoremediation systems in water. We cover the importance of applied science and environmental engineering to generate sustainable strategies to improve water quality. In this context, the phytoremediation capabilities of different plant species and possible obstacles that phytoremediation systems may encounter are discussed with suitable examples by comparing different mechanistic processes. According to the presented data, there are a wide range of plant species with water phytoremediation potential that need to be studied from a multidisciplinary perspective to make water phytoremediation a viable method.

This is the first viral metagenomic analysis of grapevine conducted in Mexico. During the summer of 2021, 48 plants displaying virus-like symptoms were sampled in Queretaro, an important grapevine-producing area of Mexico, and analyzed for the presence of viruses via high-throughput sequencing (HTS). The results of HTS were verified by real-time RT-PCR following a standardized testing scheme (Protocol 2010). Fourteen different viruses were identified, including grapevine asteroid mosaic-associated virus (GAMaV), grapevine Cabernet Sauvignon reovirus (GCSV), grapevine fanleaf virus (GFLV), grapevine fleck virus (GFkV), grapevine Pinot gris virus (GPGV), grapevine red globe virus (GRGV), grapevine rupestris stem pitting-associated virus (GRSPaV), grapevine rupestris vein feathering virus (GRVFV), grapevine Syrah virus 1 (GSyV-1), grapevine virus B (GVB), and grapevine leafroll-associated viruses 1, 2, 3, 4 (GLRaV1, 2, 3, 4). Additionally, divergent variants of GLRaV4 and GFkV, and a novel Enamovirus-like virus were discovered. This is the first report of GAMaV, GCSV, GLRaV4, GPGV, GRGV, GRVFV, and GSyV-1 infecting grapevines in Mexico; the impact of these pathogens on production is unknown.

Artemisia ludoviciana Nutt. is an important aromatic plant widely used in traditional Mexican medicine for its therapeutic potential. Its medicinal activity is attributed to a wide range of bioactive compounds, including flavonoids. However, overexploitation, habitat loss, climate change and plant diseases threaten its natural populations and diversity. Although the species reproduces both sexually and asexually, conventional propagation methods are often slow, limited by environmental factors, and susceptible to pests and pathogens. Therefore, this research aimed to establish a micropropagation protocol for A. ludoviciana and to evaluate the changes in its phenolic composition and antioxidant activity while adapting to ex vitro conditions. Full-strength Murashige and Skoog (MS) media supplemented with 0.1 mg L⁻¹ 6-benzylaminopurine resulted in the highest number of shoots (3.30 ± 0.34) and shoot length (3.00 ± 0.12 cm). Moreover, 1/2 MS media supplemented with 0.5 mg L⁻¹ indole-3-acetic acid improved the number (14.45 ± 0.56) and quality of roots. Hardening and acclimatization of plantlets showed 100% survival after 10 weeks. Also, the phenolic composition and antioxidant activity of A. ludoviciana changed in response to stress derived from growth conditions. The results support the sustainable use and rapid propagation of the species, as well as provide the basis for the study of secondary metabolism in the plant.