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Advances in Tea Tree Metabolism and Genetics
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Advances in Tea Tree Metabolism and Genetics

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 August 2025 | Viewed by 3966

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Xiaoling Sun

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Biology, Genetics and Breeding of Special Economic Animals and Plants, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tea Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou 310008, China
Interests: tea tree; herbivores; tea tree resistance; tea tree breeding; tea tree protection
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The tea tree, Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze, is an economically important, perennial woody plant rich in secondary metabolites. The characteristic secondary metabolites which are mainly produced in the leaves during the process of plant growth give tea its unique qualities and are beneficial to human health. Upon biotic and abiotic stresses, the tea tree deals with the adverse situation by accumulating defensive secondary metabolites in its leaves, stems and roots. 

With the publication of high-quality reference sequences of tea plants and re-sequencing data from different tea accessions, great advances have been made in tea plant biology, which in turn extend our understanding of tea plant genetics and metabolism. Several advanced genomics and phenomics technologies have already been utilized in the investigation of tea tree metabolism to meet demands for improved quality and address multiple challenges through breeding high-quality and resistant varieties. This Special Issue of IJMS welcomes original research and review articles that present recent advances in the field, with a focus on tea tree metabolism and genetics. 

Dr. Xiaoling Sun
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • tea tree
  • secondary metabolite
  • genetic transformation
  • genetic breeding
  • tea germplasm improvement

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 7764 KiB  
Article
Transcriptomics and Plant Hormone Analysis Reveal the Mechanism of Branching Angle Formation in Tea Plants (Camellia sinensis)
by Jinping Zhu, Xiaoman Li, Jianyan Huang, Lu Wang, Qinghua Zheng, Hanjia Li, Yao Chen, Junwei Tang, Xinyuan Hao, Xinchao Wang, Youyi Huang and Jianming Zeng
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(2), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26020604 - 13 Jan 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1339
Abstract
The branching angle of tea plants is a key factor in determining their branching structure, which significantly affects yield, suitability for mechanical harvesting, and overall plant architecture. However, the mechanisms underlying branching angle formation in tea plants remain unclear. In this study, we [...] Read more.
The branching angle of tea plants is a key factor in determining their branching structure, which significantly affects yield, suitability for mechanical harvesting, and overall plant architecture. However, the mechanisms underlying branching angle formation in tea plants remain unclear. In this study, we explored the mechanism of branching angle formation in tea plants by analysing the transcriptome and plant hormone levels of tea plant cultivars with different branching angles. The results indicated that gibberellin positively regulates the branching angle of tea plants, cytokinins, auxin, and abscisic acid involved in the formation of branching angles in tea plants. The transcriptome analysis revealed that candidate regulatory factors, including plant-hormone-related genes (the gibberellin synthesis gene GA3ox1 and metabolism gene GA2ox1; the cytokinin metabolism genes CKX and UGT; the auxin signal transduction-related gene LAX3; and the abscisic acid signal transduction gene PYL4), genes regulating cell division and growth (LAZY1, TAC1, and MAX1), and transcription factors (MYBs, WRKYs, TCPs, AP2/ERFs, and MADS-box), are involved in the formation of branching angles in tea plants. These results offer insights into the mechanism of branching angle formation in tea plants, providing important theoretical reference for the selection and breeding of tea cultivars suitable for mechanical harvesting, thereby improving agricultural efficiency and sustainability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tea Tree Metabolism and Genetics)
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17 pages, 6065 KiB  
Article
Effects of Brassinosteroid on the Physiological Changes on Two Varieties of Tea Plants Under Salt Stress
by Zhuolu Zhang, Xiru Ma, Dandan Tang, Yiduo Chen, Guo Chen, Juanfen Zou, Liqiang Tan, Qian Tang and Wei Chen
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(24), 13445; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252413445 - 15 Dec 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1078
Abstract
Salt stress is one of the abiotic stresses affecting crop quality and yield, and the application of exogenous brassinosteroids (BRs) can be used in response to salt stress. However, the function of BR in tea plants under salt stress remains to be elucidated. [...] Read more.
Salt stress is one of the abiotic stresses affecting crop quality and yield, and the application of exogenous brassinosteroids (BRs) can be used in response to salt stress. However, the function of BR in tea plants under salt stress remains to be elucidated. This study investigated the effects of exogenous spraying of BR on the malondialdehyde, soluble sugar, soluble protein, and antioxidant enzyme activities in tea plants under salt stress and explored the expression changes in genes related to the synthesis pathways of proline and secondary metabolites (flavonoids and theanine). The results show that 200 mM NaCl solution inhibits the physiology of tea plants, but 0.2 mg/L BR could partially reduce the damage by increasing photosynthetic pigments, osmoregulatory substances (such as soluble sugar, soluble protein, and proline), and the activity of antioxidant enzymes (including peroxidase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase), while decreasing the malondialdehyde content in salt-stressed leaves. The qRT-PCR experiment also shows that the genes related to the synthesis pathways of proline and secondary metabolites (flavonoids and theanine) were upregulated under salt stress, and the proline degradation genes were downregulated, thus promoting the accumulation of proline under salt stress in both varieties. When tea plants were subjected to salt stress, the expression of genes related to the synthesis of secondary metabolites was regulated accordingly to resist salt stress. Moreover, spraying BR had an obvious effect on improving the salt tolerance of tea plants. Therefore, exploring a way to improve the salt tolerance of tea trees provides a reference for the subsequent study of its salt tolerance mechanism, which is of great significance for expanding the introduction area of tea trees, increasing the planting area of tea trees, and improving the yield and quality of tea. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tea Tree Metabolism and Genetics)
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11 pages, 3435 KiB  
Article
Integrated Analysis of Metabolites and Microorganisms Reveals the Anthracnose Resistance Benefits from Cyanidin Mediated by Proteobacteria in Tea Plants
by Dandan You, Meiya Liu, Jianyun Ruan, Zhenhong Wang and Qunfeng Zhang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(21), 11483; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252111483 - 25 Oct 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 928
Abstract
Anthocyanins, key quality components of tea, act as an important bridge between plants and the environment due to their function on protecting plants from biotic and abiotic irritants. This study aimed to assess the interactions between anthocyanins metabolism and the environment. Purple (P) [...] Read more.
Anthocyanins, key quality components of tea, act as an important bridge between plants and the environment due to their function on protecting plants from biotic and abiotic irritants. This study aimed to assess the interactions between anthocyanins metabolism and the environment. Purple (P) and green (G) leaves with different anthocyanin contents were inoculated with tea plant anthracnose. High-throughput metabolomics and 16S microbial diversity sequencing methods were used to screen the anthocyanin fractions of tea plant leaves responsive to anthracnose. The interconnections between metabolites and the resistance of phyllosphere microorganisms to fungal pathogens were then analyzed. The results showed that leaves with high anthocyanin content (0.14% of diseased area ratio) were less impacted by anthracnose infestation than leaves with low anthocyanin (3.12%). The cyanidin content decreased after infection in purple leaves (PR) and increased in green leaves (GR). The relative abundance of Cyanobacteria was suppressed by the significant enrichment of Proteobacteria after anthracnose infection in green leaves. However, there were no significant differences between these two groups of microorganisms in purple leaves. Collinear network analysis revealed a strong correlation between Cyanobacteria and Dihydrosorbinol and between Proteobacteria and cyanidin metabolites. Among them, OTU456 (Bosea) was identified as the key taxonomic group of bacterial communities in the green-infected leaf network. In summary, the anthracnose resistance benefits from cyanidin mediated by proteobacteria in tea plants. These results deepen our understanding of the regulation of secondary metabolism in tea plants and the formation of plant resistance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Tea Tree Metabolism and Genetics)
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