Mechanisms of PFAS uptake and bioaccumulation in plants

Anthropogenic activities, including industrialization and mining, have contributed to the widespread occurrence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in agroecosystems. Soil is a major sink for these emerging pollutants, affecting human health through contaminated crops and water. Conventional remediation of PFAS in soil is costly and inefficient due to strong sorption with mineral ions and soil colloids, while their amphiphilic nature also complicates the removal process. Plants uptake PFAS through transpiration stream, facilitated by anion channels, aquaporins, and carrier proteins. Existing studies have discussed PFAS translocation and bioaccumulation in agricultural plants and health risk, with a limited focus on PFAS sorption interaction in the rhizosphere, enzymatic degradation of PFAS, and alternative utilization of non-edible wild plants for phytoremediation and safe biomass disposal. Wild plants that tolerate high stress can hyperaccumulate PFAS, with post-harvest biomass pyrolysis to destruct PFAS and produce biochar. This review compiles existing information on partitioning and sorption mechanisms in soil and pore water, plant exposure to PFAS from different sources, uptake and bioaccumulation in plants, and screening of potential plants for phytoremediation. Future research should focus on a combination of sustainable remediation practices, screening wild accumulator species with extracellular enzymatic degradation efficiency, along with microbial consortium to enhance rhizosphere degradation of PFAS and shoot-biomass pyrolysis for PFAS degradation.