Plant evolution: How duckweeds became so small.

Duckweed fronds retain ancestral organ identities despite compression and fusion, revealing a unique evolutionary route to plant miniaturization.

• Why it matters: Understanding how plants evolve to become smaller can shed light on developmental and evolutionary processes, filling gaps in knowledge about plant body plan simplification.
• What they did: The study examined the structure of duckweed fronds, demonstrating that they preserve ancestral organ identities even after significant compression and fusion, alongside evidence of root loss.
• The result: These findings suggest that plant miniaturization can occur through distinct evolutionary pathways, involving retention of ancestral organ identities despite body plan reduction.