Jie Zhang¹ , Chunyu Li²

1 Institute of Life Sciences, Jiyang Colloge of Zhejiang A&F University, Zhuji, 311800, Zhejiang, China
2 Modern Agricultural Research Center, Cuixi Academy of Biotechnology, Zhuji, 311800, Zhejiang, China
Author    Correspondence author
Journal of Tea Science Research, 2024, Vol. 14, No. 5   doi: 10.5376/jtsr.2024.14.0026
Received: 15 Aug., 2024    Accepted: 20 Sep., 2024    Published: 08 Oct., 2024

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Zhang J., and Li C.Y., 2024, Utilizing wild tea species for stress-resistant varieties case studies, Journal of Tea Science Research, 14(5): 285-292 (doi: 10.5376/jtsr.2024.14.0026)

The stress resistance of tea plants (Camellia sinensis) is crucial for their growth, yield, and quality, as environmental stresses such as drought, low temperatures, high salinity, and pests can severely impact tea production. Wild tea germplasm resources exhibit rich genetic diversity and are regarded as an important genetic reservoir for stress-resistant traits. This study systematically summarizes the genetic basis of stress resistance in tea plants, with a particular focus on key stress-responsive genes, molecular signaling pathways, and their regulatory mechanisms. It also explores the stress resistance traits and genetic diversity of wild tea plants, analyzing their ecological distribution and adaptive characteristics. Regarding stress-resistant tea breeding, this study reviews traditional breeding methods, molecular breeding techniques, and gene editing applications, while also presenting successful cases of breeding stress-resistant varieties using wild tea resources. Despite significant progress in improving stress resistance, challenges remain in the conservation and utilization of wild germplasm resources, as well as in the complex polygenic inheritance of stress resistance traits. This study further examines the prospects of emerging technologies such as genomic selection, transcriptomics, and artificial intelligence in tea breeding. Based on an analysis of current research challenges, future directions for tea breeding are proposed, emphasizing the rational utilization of wild tea germplasm resources to enhance the stress resistance and production stability of cultivated tea plants, enabling them to better adapt to changing environmental conditions.

Tea plant (Camellia sinensis); Stress resistance; Wild germplasm; Genetic diversity; Molecular breeding