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Journal of Tea Science ›› 2025, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (3): 415-426.

• Research Paper • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Metabolomics Analysis of Different Resistant Tea Cultivars Infected by Acaphylla theae in The Early Stage

ZHANG Hui, LIU Fengjing*, LI Huiling, LI Liangde, WANG Qingsen, WANG Dingfeng*   

  1. Tea Research Institute, Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Fuzhou 350013, China
  • Received:2025-02-18 Revised:2025-03-25 Online:2025-06-15 Published:2025-06-18

Abstract: To investigate the metabolic response mechanisms of tea plants with different resistance levels at the early stage of infestation by the tea orange mite (Acaphylla theae), this study used the mite-resistant cultivar ‘Meizhan’ and the mite-susceptible cultivar ‘Fuyun 6’ as materials to analyze the metabolomic changes 24 hours after mite infestation. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) combined with physiological and biochemical index measurements was employed to compare differences in secondary metabolites between the two cultivars (screening criteria: VIP>1 and P≤0.05). The results show that under mite stress, the total phenolic and flavonoid contents in the resistant cultivar were significantly higher than those in the susceptible cultivar, while the amino acid and free fatty acid contents were significantly lower. Metabolomic analysis identified 370 significantly differential metabolites, primarily involving flavonoids, alkaloids and lipids. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis reveals that the differential metabolites were significantly enriched in the flavonoid and flavonol biosynthetic pathways, with key flavonoids such as naringenin, quercetin, myricetin, and apigenin accumulating significantly in the resistant cultivar. In conclusion, early infestation by the tea orange mite induces the activation of flavonoid metabolic pathways in tea plants, and the resistant cultivar enhances the synthesis of secondary metabolites such as naringenin and quercetin, forming a distinct defense response mechanism from that of the susceptible cultivar. This study provided a theoretical basis for elucidating the molecular mechanisms of mite resistance in tea plants and for breeding resistant cultivars.

Key words: Acaphylla theae, tea plant, resistance, metabolomics analysis, metabolites

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