An indoor experiment was undertaken to investigate the response of phytochelatins and their relationship to cadmium toxicity in Pistia stratiotes L., a free-floating macrophyte, exposed to low concentrations of cadmium typically found in realistic environments. Cadmium concentrations of 0.01 to 0.08 microM had no toxic effects on the growth of this plant, as indicated by no significant changes in the fresh weights of leaves and roots and the slight induction of phytochelatins in plant tissues, whereas cadmium concentrations of 0.16 to 1 microM were toxic, and cadmium toxicity increased with the increase of cadmium concentrations in solutions, accompanied by the dramatic production of phytochelatins in plant tissues, especially in roots. There was a positive correction between root phytochelatin levels and cadmium toxicity, as measured by the growth inhibition rate of the root fresh weight. The results suggested that phytochelatins in aquatic macrophytes can serve as sensitive biomarkers for heavy metal toxicity in a moderately polluted water environment.