Taking strong aroma ‘Jinguanyin’ (JGY), ‘Huangdan’ also known as ‘Huangjingui’ (HJG), and ‘Daye Huangdan’ also known as ‘Dadan’ (DD) as raw tea materials, multiple blending tests and sensory evaluation comparisons were carried out. The optimal blended tea sample ‘Fengyan Xiangcong’ (FYXC) was obtained with the blending ratio of JGY 28%, HJG 42% and DD 30%. Widely targeted metabolomics was employed to determine the aroma and taste components of these four samples. The results show that the blended tea (FYXC) was superior to the three raw teas in both sensory quality and main biochemical components. Compared with DD and JGY, the contents of green note-associated (Z)-3-hexenol and scorched note-associated 3-mercapto-3-methylbutyl formate in FYXC were down-regulated, while the content of floral and fruity note-associated δ-decalactone was up-regulated. These changes not only enhanced the floral aroma of the blended tea but also mitigated the inherent defects of the raw teas, such as the green note in DD and the scorched note in HJG. In comparison with the three raw teas, the caffeine content in FYXC was increased, which reduced the odor threshold of aromatic substances including δ-decalactone and further enhanced the floral and fruity aromas of the blended tea. Moreover, compared with HJG and JGY, FYXC had elevated the contents of glutamine (a sweet-tasting component) and aspartic acid (a fresh and brisk-tasting component), while the contents of bitter-tasting leucine, kaempferol-3-O-glucoside (a bitter-enhancing component), were decreased, and the content of simple catechin C was increased. These variations in component contents endowed the blended tea with a fresher, brisker and mellow taste. Collectively, tea blending can alter the compositional profile of chemical components in tea, achieve complementary advantages among raw teas, and exert the effect of highlighting superior characteristics and masking inferior ones, thereby improving the quality of blended strong-aroma oolong tea from southern Fujian. The findings of this study provided a theoretical basis for the blending of strong aroma oolong tea in southern Fujian.

Low temperature is one of the major environmental factors limiting tea production. Elucidating the regulatory network underlying cold tolerance in tea plants and identifying key functional genes provide a theoretical basis for cold-resistant cultivar breeding through molecular approaches. In this study, ‘Longjing 43’ (LJ43) and its closely related variants ‘Zhongcha Huangya 5’ (ZH5) and ‘Zhongcha 108’ (ZC108), which share highly similar genetic backgrounds, were used as materials. Based on phenotypic observations and measurements of relative electrolyte leakage (REL), maximum photochemical efficiency of PSII (Fv/Fm), and malondialdehyde (MDA) content, the cold tolerance of the three cultivars was found to be in the following order: ZH5 > ZC108 > LJ43. Transcriptome sequencing identified 2 384, 4 186, and 4 434 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Among these DEGs, 999 were shared by all three cultivars. Pathway enrichment analysis reveals that these common DEGs were significantly enriched in early cold-responsive biological processes, including plant hormone signal transduction, MAPK signaling cascade and transcriptional regulation, which constituted the core factors underlying the divergent cold resistance of the three tea cultivars. Further analysis identifies cultivar-specific DEGs in LJ43 (899), ZC108 (1 722) and ZH5 (1 504), which were separately enriched in distinct substance metabolism pathways. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) further demonstrates that modules significantly correlated with cold treatment exhibited obvious disparities among the three cultivars. In summary, these results indicate that tea cultivars adopt genotype-specific strategies to cope with cold stress, and such differential responses serve as a critical contributor to the inter-cultivar variation in cold tolerance. This study clarified the molecular basis underlying the differences in cold tolerance between LJ43 and its variants, expanded the current understanding of cold tolerance regulation in tea plants, and provided a theoretical foundation for cold-resistance breeding.

Direct covering is widely used in the production of matcha raw material, with the advantages of easy operation, low cost, and compatibility with mechanized management. However, how shade nets with different materials and colors differentially affect the canopy microenvironment and flavonoid biosynthesis in tea plants remains unclear. In the present study, eight shade nets varying in material and color were applied to the tea cultivar ‘Longjing 43’ in the field to investigate their effects on the canopy microenvironment and flavonoid accumulation in tencha. The results show that direct covering primarily regulated the canopy microenvironment through changes in ultraviolet (UV) radiation, air humidity, and leaf temperature beneath the cover. Net shade percentage was the major determinant of UV intensity under the net. A black inner surface was more effective in reducing leaf temperature, whereas a white outer surface or aluminum-foil material decreased net surface temperature and heat accumulation, thereby lowering the risk of leaf scorching. All covering treatments generally reduced flavonoid accumulation in the processed tencha, with total catechins decreasing by 16.4%-33.6% and total flavonol glycosides by 23.8%-43.3%. Correlation analysis based on both absolute values and treatment-induced changes further demonstrates that reduced UV radiation was the major driver of the decline in flavonoids, particularly flavonol glycosides, whereas a moderate increase in leaf temperature promoted the accumulation of catechins and quercetin glycosides. Therefore, when producing matcha raw materials under direct covering, shade-net types that combine a high shading rate with good heat dissipation properties should be prioritized,in order to both reduce the UV intensity beneath the net and control leaf temperature. This study provided a theoretical basis for optimizing shading practices and designing novel shade nets for the targeted quality regulation of matcha raw materials.

This study aimed to isolate and screen elite nitrogen-fixing bacterial strains with multiple plant growth-promoting (PGPR) traits from the rhizosphere of tea plants in the high-altitude Yigong tea area of Xizang, identify their phylogenetic positions, and evaluate their application potential, so as to provide resources and a theoretical basis for developing specialized microbial inoculants for high-altitude tea plantations. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria were isolated using the dilution plate method with Ashby's nitrogen-free medium. Nitrogenase activities of the strains were measured by the acetylene reduction assay. Strain identification was based on morphological, physiological, biochemical characteristics and 16 S rDNA sequence analysis. The abilities of the strains to solubilize phosphate, release potassium, produce siderophores, synthesize indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), as well as their salt tolerance were further determined. Pot experiments using tea plants (the host plants), maize and rapeseed were conducted to verify the practical growth-promoting effects of the strains. The results show that ten nitrogen-fixing bacterial strains were isolated and screened from the tea rhizosphere soil, exhibiting nitrogenase activities ranging from 20.06 to 23.71 nmol·mg^-1·h^-1. The strains MZ-4-74, SC-5-67, MZ-2-5 and FX-2-86 were Serratia odorifera. The strains FX-3-48, FX-4-31, FX-4-73 and MZ-3-16 were Serratia fonticola. The strains FX-2-66 and FX-3-66 were Pseudomonas koreensis and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, respectively. Functional characterization reveals that all 10 strains could solubilize potassium, 8 strains possessed phosphate solubilizing ability, 9 strains could produce siderophores, and 7 strains could synthesize IAA. Among them, FX-3-48, FX-2-86 and SC-5-67 exhibited strong salt tolerance. The pot experiment results demonstrate that inoculation with all strains significantly promoted the growth of tea, maize and rapeseed seedlings. The FX-3-48 treatment shows the most pronounced effect, increasing the fresh weight, stem diameter, plant height, and root length of tea seedlings by 330.77%, 61.54%, 86.09%, and 94.53%, respectively, compared to the CK control. The rhizosphere of tea plants in Yigong in Xizang area harbors abundant nitrogen-fixing bacterial resources with multiple plant growth-promoting functions. The screened strains exhibit significant potential for development into microbial inoculants, holding great importance for promoting green production in high-altitude tea plantations.

To clarify the occurrence of tea leaf diseases and their pathogenic fungi in Jiangxi Province, and to formulate effective green prevention and control measures. From 2019 to 2022, the field investigation of tea leaf diseases was carried out in 61 tea gardens in Jiangxi Province. The diseased leaves were collected, and after isolation and purification of the pathogens, morphological observation and molecular identification based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences were carried out respectively. It was found that there were 25 kinds of tea leaf diseases in Jiangxi Province, and 258 strains of pathogenic fungi were isolated from tea leaves, which were distributed in 19 genera. Among the pathogenic fungi of leaf diseases, Colletotrichum and Pestalotiopsis-like fungi had the highest isolation rate and were the main pathogens of leaf diseases. A total of 7 genera, including Alternaria, Botryosphaeria, Diaporthe, Fusarium, Nigrospora, Phomopsis and Phyllosticta were isolated from diseased leaves of several tea gardens and were identified as secondary pathogens. Tea blister blight and tea white scab are prevalent in high-altitude tea areas, and tea sooty mould is more serious in individual tea gardens.

This study proposed a lightweight YOLOv8n-GCW model to address the challenges of low efficiency in manual disease detection and limited performance in small-scale lesion identification under varying illumination conditions in plateau tea plantations. Based on a dataset of typical diseases in Yunnan large-leaf tea gardens, the model was optimized in three key areas to improve performance: (1) the feature extraction network was reconstructed using GhostNet for edge computing compatibility. (2) The Coordinate attention mechanism was integrated to enhance robustness under complex lighting. (3) The overlapping lesion localization accuracy was optimized through a dynamic Wise-IoUloss function. Experimental results demonstrate that the improved model outperformed the original YOLOv8n, with a 5.6% increase in precision, 4.0% in recall, 5.3 % in F1-score, and 4.5% in mean average precision (mAP@0.5), while reducing the number of parameters by 42.7%. On the validation set, key loss functions decreased by 9.87%-10.74%, and the inference speed reached 53.84FPS, meeting the lightweight deployment requirements of portable agricultural devices. Ablation studies and Grad-CAM visualizations further validated the model's effectiveness. This study provided a lightweight solution for intelligent disease monitoring in plateau tea plantations. Combined with agricultural IoT technology, it held potential for extension to comprehensive smart disease control systems across tea plantations, promoting sustainable development in smart tea cultivation.

To elucidate the remediation potential and underlying mechanisms of a microbial composite agent against polyethylene (PE) microplastic and cadmium (Cd) co-contamination in tea garden soils, a pot experiment was conducted using Camellia sinensis cv. ‘Longjing 43’ seedlings. Soil samples were spiked with PE particle suspension and CdCl₂·5H₂O to simulate co-contamination stress. A microbial composite agent composed of Bacillus subtilis and Rhodopseudomonas palustris with a 1∶1 viable cell ratio was subsequently applied to explore the effects of different application concentrations on soil biological activity, microbial community structure, as well as tea seedling morphology, Cd accumulation, stress resistance, photosynthetic parameters, and related gene expression. The results show that the application of the composite agent significantly enhanced soil enzyme activities, promoted the immobilization of available Cd, optimized the microbial community structure, and increased the abundance of beneficial microbial groups. At the plant level, the agent reduced Cd translocation to tea leaves, alleviated oxidative damage, and restored photosynthetic performance and antioxidant defense in tea seedlings. Expressions of genes related to α-linolenic acid metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, and fatty acid catabolism were up-regulated, indicating the activation of stress-adaptive metabolic pathways. These findings indicate that the microbial composite agent can effectively mitigate oxidative damage and heavy metal toxicity induced by PE-exacerbated Cd stress via regulating the soil environment and the physiological and molecular networks in tea plants in a concentration-dependent manner. This study provided a theoretical basis and technical support for the bioremediation of microplastic and heavy metal co-contamination in tea garden soils and for the safe production of tea plants.

In light of the low efficiency of premium tea harvesting and the insufficient research on dual-arm task allocation and path planning in existing studies, this study used a common-rail gantry dual-arm harvesting platform as the experimental carrier and proposed a dual-arm collaborative task planning and scheduling method for tea bud harvesting. For multi-target tea bud harvesting tasks, a hybrid path planning algorithm based on GA-2Opt was proposed and combined with a region partitioning strategy guided by time costs to achieve adaptive load balancing between the two arms. Meanwhile, an active collision avoidance scheduling mechanism based on temporal sequences was introduced to mitigate interference conflicts in the dual-arm system at the planning layer. Field experiments demonstrate a picking success rate of approximately 79.7% and an average dual-arm parallelism rate of 93.3%. Compared with traditional partitioning strategies, the system significantly reduced total operating time, with an average picking cycle time of 1.39 s per tea bud. These findings validate the robustness of the collaborative strategy in unstructured environments, and provide a high-efficiency solution for automated premium tea harvesting.

As perchlorate (ClO₄^-) is almost entirely transferred from fresh tea leaves to made tea, establishing a rapid detection method for ClO₄^- in tea materials is of critical importance for estimating its residue levels in tea before processing, thus avoiding resource waste. A rapid and selective fluorescence method based on toluidine blue (TB)-assisted liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) was developed in this research for detecting perchlorate in fresh tea leaves. TB acts as a ClO₄^- specific fluorescent probe, forming an ion-pair complex with ClO₄^- which is more soluble in low-polar organic solvents than in water. This property facilitates the effective elimination of fluorescence interference from various water-soluble complex in tea by utilizing LLE. This results in significant fluorescence enhancement at 677 nm, enabling both visual and instrumental detection of ClO₄^-. The method achieved excellent performance in fresh tea leaves: recoveries of 70.7%-75.7%, relative standard deviation (RSD) <11.7%, limit of quantification (LOQ) at 0.15 mg·kg^-1, and a total procedure time of 20 min. The entire procedure demonstrates good anti-interference, high selectivity, sensitivity and speed. After correction using a 5-fold correction factor, the accuracy of this method was comparable to that of the UPLC-MS/MS method when analyzing actual fresh tea leaf samples. Among the 12 fresh tea leaf samples tested, the ClO₄^- content ranged from not detected (ND, <0.15 mg·kg^-1) to 0.18 mg·kg^-1, with a detection rate of 83.3%. The method achieved an accuracy of 85.7% in determining whether the perchlorate content in fresh tea leaves would exceed the regulatory limit in processed tea products. This method demonstrates high selectivity and sensitivity, along with a rapid detection throughput, making it a promising strategy for the expeditious screening of hazardous analytes in complex sample matrices.

This study systematically investigated the quality characteristics and in vivo anti-inflammatory activity of Astragali Radix-aged white tea. The tea was prepared from Fuding aged Shoumei white tea and Hunyuan Astragali Radix and evaluated using sensory assessment, conventional physicochemical analyses, non-targeted metabolomics, and in vivo anti-inflammatory assays. Sensory evaluation shows that the tea retained the sweet and mellow flavor of white tea while exhibiting a moderate herbal aroma, with overall good sensory harmony. Physicochemical analyses indicates that the moisture content, free amino acids, tea polyphenols, and total flavonoids were all within typical ranges. Non-targeted metabolomic profiling identified 155 compounds, including common tea polyphenols, flavonoids, N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidinone-substituted flavanols, amino acids, alkaloids, and phenolic acids, along with several characteristic triterpene saponins and isoflavones derived from Astragali Radix. The results of animal experiments show that the water extract of Astragali Radix-aged white tea significantly reduced xylene-induced ear swelling in mice at both low (0.30 g·kg^-1) and high (0.60 g·kg^-1) doses, with inhibition rates of 47.60% and 41.90%, respectively. This is comparable to the positive control aspirin (41.90%). In addition, notable anti-inflammatory activity was exhibited by the extractin both the carrageenan-induced paw edema model and the cotton pellet-induced granuloma model in rats, with low (0.21 g·kg^-1) and high (0.42 g·kg^-1) doses inhibiting granuloma formation by 35.61% and 33.78%, respectively. Overall, these findings provided a detailed characterization of the chemical composition and in vivo anti-inflammatory activity of Astragali Radix-aged white tea, supporting its potential development as a functional food-medicinal tea product.

Although national parks are the primary means of conserving biodiversity, they face challenges such as limited coverage and insufficient landscape connectivity. Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) represent a key mechanism to bridge these conservation gaps. Focusing on Kaihua County, home to the candidate area of Qianjiangyuan National Park, this study utilized data on 17 key bird species to identify conservation gaps via the MaxEnt model and systematic conservation planning. Additionally, a bivariate spatial autocorrelation model was employed to quantify the supplementary value of tea gardens as potential OECMs. The results indicate that the existing national park covers only 20.63% of highly suitable bird habitats, with approximately 80% of these key areas located outside protected boundaries, revealing a distinct conservation gap. A significant positive spatial correlation was found between tea gardens and priority bird conservation areas (Moran’s I =0.238), with tea gardens in the northwest exhibiting significant “High-High” clustering, confirming their spatial congruence. Furthermore, 57.15% of the tea gardens in the study area effectively covered the bird priority protection space outside the Qianjiangyuan National Park, providing critical habitats for rare species such as the Black-throated Bushtit (Aegithalos concinnus). The unique “tree-shrub” composite structure of tea gardens functions as “ecological stepping stones” consistent with the “unintentional conservation” characteristic of OECMs. This kind of production landscape with high ecological value is incorporated into the OECMs management system, thereby improving the connectivity and stability of the overall ecological network.

Afidopyropen is a novel biogenic insecticide with broad application prospects due to its low toxicity and high safety to non-target organisms. To evaluate the safety of afidopyropen use on jasmine flowers, the raw material for jasmine tea, this study investigated the residual behavior of afidopyropen and its metabolite M440I007 during the cultivation, processing, and brewing of jasmine flowers. The dissipation of afidopyropen on jasmine flowers in the field followed first-order kinetic, with a half-life of only 0.5 d, leading to the formation of metabolite M440I007. Both afidopyropen and M440I007 showed concentration effects during the direct drying process of fresh jasmine flowers into dried jasmine, with processing factors of 5.07-6.83 and 4.19-6.82, respectively. In the scenting-drying process, afidopyropen and M440I007 also showed an enrichment trend, with processing factors of 4.55 and 6.79, respectively. The residue level of afidopyropen in the scenting-dried sample (0.038 mg·kg^-1) was lower than that in concurrently direct-dried jasmine sample (0.057 mg·kg^-1), indicating the migration of the parent pesticide from the flowers to the tea substrate during the scenting process. The total leaching rate of afidopyropen during the brewing of dried jasmine flower was 28.5%-55.8%, with first, second and third infusion leaching rates of 16.0%-33.2%, 8.1%-16.0% and 4.4%-9.3%, respectively. Dietary risk assessment indicated that the chronic risk quotient (RQc) and acute risk quotient (RQa) for afidopyropen and M440I007 in the scenario of consuming jasmine infusion were 0.008% and 0.005%, respectively, demonstrating an acceptable level of dietary risk.

As the primary reproductive organ of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis), the flower exhibits rich phenotypic diversity, which holds significant importance for the genetic improvement of tea plants. In this study, 64 tea germplasm accessions were used to systematically investigate the phenotypic diversity of nine qualitative traits and twelve quantitative traits related to floral morphology. Based on 47 111 high-quality SNP markers, population genetic structure analysis and genome-wide association study (GWAS) were performed. The results reveal abundant genetic diversity in floral traits among the tested materials, with ovary villi, weight per 100 flowers, and the proportion of the bifurcation to the columella showing relatively large variation, which could serve as core evaluation indicators. Population structure analysis divided the materials into three genetic subgroups, which were highly consistent with the phenotypic clustering results. Through GWAS, 245 SNP loci significantly associated with 10 important floral traits were identified. Furthermore, five core candidate genes (GWHTASIV003067, GWHTASIV018433, GWHTASIV032688, GWHTASIV001183, GWHTASIV044042) were identified, which are involved in key biological processes such as growth regulation, RNA editing, cell cycle control, chromatin remodeling and transcriptional regulation. This study provided a systematic multidimensional analysis of the genetic basis of floral traits in tea plants for the first time, offering important gene resources and a theoretical foundation for research into the molecular mechanisms of floral traits and for molecular marker-assisted breeding in tea plants.

This study systematically investigated the effects of long-term reduction in chemical fertilizer application and organic fertilizer substitution on soil fertility, spring tea yield and quality in tea garden through long-term field positioning experiments. The experiment included four treatments: no fertilizer (NF), conventional fertilization (CF), microbial fertilizer substitution (MF), and organic fertilizer substitution (OF). The results show that the spring tea yields under MF and OF treatments maintained high yield levels, which had no significant differences to those under CF. In terms of quality, compared to CF, the OF treatment increased free amino acid content by 7.8%, while the MF treatment increased caffeine content by 54.8%. Regarding soil properties, MF and OF treatments increased organic matter by 28.4% and 45.5%, and total nitrogen by 11.1% and 24.8%, respectively, compared to CF. OF promoted the formation of large aggregates (>2 mm) and mean weight diameter, significantly improving soil aggregate structure. While both substitution treatments increased carbon and nitrogen contents in aggregates and reduced the silt-clay fraction (<0.053 mm). In terms of enzyme activity, MF had the strongest promoting effects on urease, sucrase and acid phosphatase activities, while OF significantly increased catalase activity. Principal component analysis shows that OF had the highest soil fertility index (0.474), followed by MF (0.225). Correlation analysis indicates that improvements in soil structure (e.g., reduced silt and clay proportion <0.053 mm and increased aggregate proportion of 0.25-2 mm), organic carbon accumulation, and enhancements in available nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients exhibited the strongest positive correlations with spring tea yield and tea quality (e.g., free amino acid and caffeine contents). These factors may represent key soil mechanisms that synergistically enhance tea yield and quality. This study provided theoretical basis and practical reference for chemical fertilizer reduction and substitution, as well as green production in Hunan tea garden.

This study compared the adaptability of different green manure varieties in the Gaocong tea gardens of Wuyi Mountain, as well as their effects on tea garden community structure and species diversity, to provide green and efficient technical support for the sustainable management of Gaocong tea gardens in Wuyi Mountain. Seven leguminous green manures were selected as experimental groups for grass cultivation in Gaocong tea gardens, with natural grass as the control (CK). The effects of two consecutive years of grass cultivation on species richness, importance value, ecological niche, community structure, and species diversity in Gaocong tea gardens were investigated, and a hierarchical analysis method was employed for comprehensive evaluation. The results show that a total of 33 species from 32 genera across 22 families of weeds were identified in the experimental area over two years (2023 and 2024), primarily from the Poaceae, Asteraceae, Rosaceae, Polygonaceae, Phyllanthaceae, and Commelinaceae. Continuous grass cultivation reduced weed species, decreased the importance value and ecological niche width of weeds, and altered weed community structure. Different green manure varieties (lines) exhibited varying impacts on weed communities across different years of cultivation, with significant differences in species diversity among green manure varieties. However, overall diversity was lower than the control. Both years of cultivation and green manure variety significantly influenced community diversity and dominance. The results of the hierarchical analysis show that the comprehensive weed control ability was Vigna unguiculata (MN) > Crotalaria pallida (ZS) > Phaseolus aureus (YN) > Cassia tora No.3 (YM003) > Lespedeza cuneata (JT) > Kummerowia striata (JY) > Cassia tora No.7 (YM007) in the first year. And it was YN > MN > ZS > YM003 > JY > JT > YM007 in the second year. In conclusion, continuous grass cultivation can effectively reduce the number of weed species and individual plants in Gaocong tea gardens, while also inhibiting weed growth. Among grass cultivation methods, MN, YN and ZS are the most suitable for managing weeds in Gaocong tea gardens in Wuyi Mountain.

Anthracnose is one of the major foliar diseases that threatens the growth and development of tea plants and compromises tea quality. At present, no standardized criterion has been established in China for evaluating tea resistance to this disease. Conventional identification and evaluation practices are largely adapted from other crops, and the associated methods rely on visual inspection, resulting in strong subjectivity, low efficiency and limited accuracy. These shortcomings severely constrain both the progress and standardization of elite tea cultivar breeding. In this study, we developed an automated evaluation framework based on deep learning and image analysis. First, Mask R-CNN was used to localize and perform instance segmentation of diseased leaves from field images. Subsequently, within the leaf region of interest (ROI), fine lesion segmentation was achieved by integrating HSV color-space thresholding rules with the Excess Green (ExG) index. Based on the lesion area ratio, a 0-9 severity grading standard was established, and an automated evaluation system was developed. The results show that the model achieved mean of intersection over union (mIoU) of 92.56% for leaf mask segmentation and ratio of average precision at IoU=0.5 (R_AP@0.5) of 98.91% for leaf instance detection. For consistency validation of lesion detection, the lesion area ratios measured by the automated method were highly significantly correlated with manual reference values generated using the Fiji-Weka tool (Pearson’s r=0.946, P<0.001), meeting the accuracy requirement to replace subjective manual grading.

To clarify the content and composition of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in different types of tea, 13 AGEs derived from lysine and arginine in green tea, white tea, oolong tea, black tea, and dark tea were analyzed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The results indicate that 9 AGEs were detected in all tea samples, arginine-derived methylglyoxal-hydroimidazolones (MG-Hs) being the predominant. The total AGEs contents in different tea typesfollowed the trend of green tea=white tea>dark tea>black tea>oolong tea (P<0.05). A high catechin content in tea did not effectively inhibit the formation of AGEs. Instead, they might serve as one of the contributing factors to elevated AGEs. This study aimed to characterize the overall profile of AGEs composition in tea, providing a comprehensive evaluation of protein thermal damage during tea processing.

A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of nine synthetic pigments illegally added to tea, such as tartrazine and sunset yellow by online purification was established. The samples were first soaked in water, then extracted with ammonia water and methanol solution, purified online by Cyclone-P column, and then determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Under optimized conditions, the nine pigments showed a good linear relationship within the mass concentration range of 0.010-1.0 μg·mL^-1, with correlation coefficients greater than 0.999. The limits of quantitation (LOQ) of nine colorants were 0.10-0.50 mg·kg^-1. The mean recoveries ranged from 71.5% to 105.9%, with the relative standard deviation of ≤8.7%. This method is simple, rapid, has good selectivity and reproducibility, high sensitivity, accurate and reliable results. It has obvious advantages for the quantitative detection of illegal added pigments to tea samples.

Based on the broad-spectrum antibacterial activity of tea polyphenols (TP), it was hypothesized that TP could suppress the formation of Streptococcus mutans-Candida albicans dual-species biofilms . Preliminary in vitro validation was conducted. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against the mixed biofilms was determined by two-fold serial dilution. Planktonic growth kinetics were monitored by optical-density curves. The MTT colorimetric assay, crystal violet staining, and colony-forming unit were used to determine biofilm metabolic activity, biomass, viable cell number, and adhesion strength, respectively. The expression of virulence-related genes in the biofilms of the two species was analyzed by real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR. TP exhibited a MIC of 2.0 mg·mL^-1 against the S. mutans-C. albicans dual-species consortium and inhibited planktonic growth in a concentration-dependent manner. TP significantly reduced biofilm metabolic activity, biomass, and viable cell count; At concentrations of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mg·mL^-1, adhesion rates dropped to approximately 60%, 20%, and 10%, respectively. The pH of the 24-hour culture supernatant in the TP-treated groups was markedly higher than that of the control and increased with concentration. Mechanistically, TP of 2.0 mg·mL^-1 downregulated key virulence gene expression in both species (gtfB, gtfD, gbpA, ftf, glgC in S. mutans and als1, hwp1, ras1 in C. albicans). These results provide initial evidence that TP can disrupt and inhibit mixed S. mutans-C. albicans biofilms in vitro, indicating its potential as a natural agent for modulating oral microecological dysbiosis.

The aging process is inevitably accompanied by a decline in muscle strength and mass, severely impairing the health and quality of life of the elderly population. Epicatechin (EC) is one of the main secondary metabolites found in tea, possesses a variety of biological activities. Previous studies have revealed the anti-aging effects of EC, but its relationship with age-related sarcopenia remains unclear. To investigate the effects and underlying mechanisms of EC on age-related sarcopenia, this study employed naturally aged C57BL/6J mice as a model. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted using a series of methodologies, including animal behavioral tests, muscle index measurements, histological analysis, Elisa assays, transcriptome sequencing and RT-qPCR validation. The results show that compared with the control group, EC treatment significantly improved the grip strength and endurance performance of aged mice (P<0.05), and significantly increased the muscle index of the gastrocnemius, tibialis anterior, and quadriceps femoris muscles (P<0.05). The gastrocnemius muscle fibers in the EC treated group were larger in area and more regularly arranged. EC significantly reduced the levels of the inflammatory factors IL-6 and TNF-α in aged mice (P<0.05). Further transcriptomic sequencing and RT-qPCR validation reveal that EC might downregulate the expression of the BCAA transaminase gene BCAT1 and upregulate the expression of the BCAA transaminase gene BCAT2, as well as the BCAA transporter genes LAT1 and LAT2, thereby regulating muscle protein synthesis. Meanwhile, it could upregulate the expressions of skeletal muscle differentiation-related genes including MyoD, MyoG, MRF4, MCK and Myf5 to alleviate sarcopenia in aged mice.

This paper aimed to investigate the mechanism of white tea extract on type Ⅱ alveolar cells and the expression level of microRNA-146a (miR-146a) in Sjogren’s syndrome complicated with pulmonary fibrosis. Human alveolar epithelial A549 cells were divided into different groups: the blank group was not treated with transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), the TGF-β1-induced group was treated with TGF-β1 without any intervention, the white tea extract group was treated with 50 μg·mL^-1 white tea extract after TGF-β1 induction, the miR-146a mimic group was transfected with 6 μL miR-146a mimic after TGF-β1 induction; and the white tea extract + miR-146a mimic group was intervened with 50 μg·mL^-1 white tea extract combined with 6 μL miR-146a mimic after TGF-β1 induction. Cell morphology was observed under a microscope and cell viability was detected by CCK-8 assay. The fluorescence intensities of E-cadherin and α-SMA proteins were measured by immunofluorescence. The expressions of SP-C and PDGFRα were detected by Western blotting. The expression levels of miR-146a, TGF-β1 and Smad2 were determined by qRT-PCR. The results show that compared with the blank group, the TGF-β1-induced group exhibited increased cell viability, fluorescence intensity of α-SMA protein, increased expressions of SP-C, PDGFRα and TGF-β1, as well as decreased expressions of E-cadherin and miR-146a (P<0.05). Compared with the TGF-β1-induced group, the white tea extract group and the miR-146a mimic group showed decreased cell viability, fluorescence intensity of α-SMA, expressions of SP-C, PDGFRα and TGF-β1, together with increased expressions of E-cadherin and miR-146a (P<0.05), with no statistically significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). Compared with the miR-146a mimic group, the aforementioned indicators in the white tea extract + miR-146a mimic group changed more significantly (P<0.05). This study indicates that white tea extract can markedly inhibit the abnormal activation of A549 cells induced by TGF-β1, reverse the process of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and downregulate fibroblast-related activity indicators. Its mechanism may be related to the up-regulation of miR-146a expression and the regulation of the TGF-β1/Smad2 signaling pathway.

Theasaponins are a class of oleanane-type triterpenoid saponins enriched in seeds of Theaceae plants. The high structural diversity but tiny structural differences among theasaponins are challenging analysis, isolation and structural identification of them, making it difficult for the industry to efficiently characterize the saponin profiles in tea seeds. In this study, using seeds from tea cultivar ‘Longjing 43’ as experimental material, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization quadrupole-orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometer (UPLC/ESI-Q-Orbitrap MS), molecular networking, and in silico mass spectrometral data processing were employed. A total of 7 and 26 theasaponins were detected in positive and negative ion modes, respectively. The triterpenoids detected in the positive ion mode were mainly triterpenoid aglycones and their organic acid esters, whereas those detected in the negative ion mode were primarily typical teasaponins characterized by structures containing triterpene aglycones, glycosyl groups and organic acids. The combination of these techniques significantly enhanced the efficiency of theasaponin analysis and the ionization mode of mass spectrometer exhibited a bias in the detection of teasaponins. This study provided a new technical way and perspective for qualitative and quantitative research on theasaponins.

With the escalating evolution of tourism consumption, tea-culture tourism has emerged as a significant growth driver, making tea-tourism integrated destinations an increasingly popular choice. However, as a niche market segment, these destinations still lack the reputation and influence of traditional scenic areas. Therefore, developing precise marketing strategies tailored to destination characteristics is essential. Grounded in the elaboration likelihood model and language expectancy theory, this study investigated the matching effect between tourism field types (aura field vs. behavior field) and advertising appeals (emotional vs. rational) on tourists’ visitation intentions, along with the underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions. Through three experiments, the results indicate that: (1) There is a significant congruity effect of advertising appeals on tourists’ visitation intentions across different types of tourism fields in tea tourism destinations. Specifically, emotional appeals are more effective than rational appeals in evoking tourists’ visitation intentions for the aura field of tea tourism destinations. (2) This effect is mediated by perceived diagnosticity. In aura field contexts, of tea tourism destinations, emotional appeals are superior to rational appeals in enhancing tourists’ perceived diagnosticity, thereby boosting their visitation intentions. (3) Tourist involvement moderates both the matching effect and the mediation mechanism, with the interaction effect being significant only for high-involvement tourists. By integrating multiple theories and quantifying the concept of the tourism field, this research enriched the theoretical landscape of tea-tourism and provided actionable insights for destination managers to customize advertising strategies based on field characteristics.

‘Wanghaicha 1’ is a newly bred green tea cultivar origining from the local population in Ninghai county. To establish an efficient breeding system, a comparative cutting experiment of long and short branch cuttings in lightweight non-woven seedling bags, and a short branch field mulching cutting experiment were set up at the Shengzhou base. The results show that the rooting rate of short branch cuttings of this cultivar was higher than that of the control ‘Longjing 43’, with better growth and greater tolerance to high temperatures and drought. Moreover, the long branch cuttings can reach the nursery standard after 77 days. The method of short branch cuttings covered with black non-woven fabric film on the seedbed can effectively reduce the frequency of manual weeding. And through Illumina HiSeq platform, transcriptome sequencing of the root system of ‘Wanghaicha1’ was performed. Compared with the control ‘Longjing 43’, 107 differentially expressed genes related to plant hormones were screened. It is speculated that the synergistic regulation of these genes may be the molecular basis for the developed root system of this culitvar. This study preliminarily obtained 107 differentially expressed genes related to plant hormones in the adventitious roots of ‘Wanghaicha1’. The established cutting mode of ‘early emergence of long branch from the nursery application of black plastic film to improve quality and efficiency’ can shorten the seedling period by 15.4% and reduce weed control costs by 85.7%, providing theoretical basis and technical support for the industrial promotion of new cultivar.

This study utilized Camellia sinensis cv. ‘Zhuyeqi’ as the research material and employed a combined strategy of Illumina ( the second-generation sequencing) and Oxford Nanopore (the third-generation sequencing) to systematically analyze and achieve a high-quality assembly of its mitochondrial genome. Furthermore, through gene annotation, codon usage bias analysis and phylogenetic analysis, this study aimed to elucidate the genetic mechanisms and evolutionary characteristics of Camellia sinensis cv. ‘Zhuyeqi’. The results indicate that the mitochondrial genome consists of seven fragments, including “one circular and six linear” structures, with a total length of 911 255 bp and a guanine-cytosine (GC) content of 45.7%. Among these fragments, fragment 1 is circular (311 104 bp), while the remaining fragments are linear. A total of 77 functional genes were annotated, including 38 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 33 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, 3 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, and 3 pseudogenes. Additionally, 269 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were identified, with tetranucleotide repeats being the most abundant type (43.49%). Mononucleotide repeats were primarily composed of adenine (A)/thymine (T) (91.18%). A total of 780 long repeat sequences were identified, comprising 354 forward repeats and 426 palindromic repeats. The analysis of nonsynonymous substitutions (Ka) and synonymous substitutions (Ks) indicates that the ccmB、rps10 and mttB genes are under significant and positive selection (Ka/Ks>1), suggesting their crucial roles in adaptive evolution to environmental conditions. Codon usage bias analysis reveals that the GC content of the third codon position (GC₃, 37.36%) in 29 PCGs was significantly lower than that of the first (GC₁, 47.81%) and second (GC₂, 43.01%) codon positions. The mean effective number of codons (ENC) is 51.98, indicating weak codon usage bias. Regression analysis of GC₁₂ and GC₃ (R² = 0.004 5) reveals that natural selection contributed 88.45%, significantly outweighing mutational pressure. Base preference shows C₃>G₃ and T₃>A₃, with optimal codons predominantly ending in uracil (U)/adenine (A) (60.87%). Phylogenetic analysis indicates that C. sinensis cv. ‘Zhuyeqi’ forms a monophyletic group with core species of the genus Camellia, supporting its taxonomic status. This study provided critical insights into the evolutionary mechanisms of the mitochondrial genome and the adaptive functions of genes in tea plants.

In the past years, the growing area of etiolated tea cultivars has continued to expand, and at the same time, diseases and pests damage have gradually emerged on the cultivars. To explore the resistance mechanism of etiolated tea cultivars against the Empoasca onukii, an important pest, three etiolated local tea cultivars, ‘Huanglongjin’, ‘Huangjinya’ and ‘Dahuangpao’, widely planted in the southwestern Zhejiang Province were selected, with ‘Longjing 43’ as the control. The feeding behavior on these tea cultivars was monitored and compared using the electrical penetration graphy technique, and their resistance was evaluated. Additionally, the differences in volatiles and non-volatile substances among the three etiolated tea cultivars were analyzed and compared between healthy status and 24 hours after leafhopper injury. The feeding behavior analysis indicates that the resistance varied from strong to weak, with ‘Huanglongjin’, ‘Longjing 43’, ‘Huangjinya’ and ‘Dahuangpao’ identified as the most and least resistant cultivars, respectively. Volatiles from tea shoots injured by E. onukii revealed the presence of six components, including α-farnesene, β-ocimene, and 2-methyl-6-methylene-1, 7-octanediene-3-one, detected in all three etiolated tea cultivars pierced and sucked by the leafhopper. The contents of these compounds were found to be highest in ‘Huanglongjin’. Sixteen main differential compounds were screened out from the non-volatile substances of tea plants after leafhopper-injured by using the orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis model. Among them, the contents of threonine, epicatechin gallate (ECG), and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) were significantly and negatively correlated with the duration of the E wave. In contrast, a significant positive correlation was observed between the contents of quercetin, serine, tyrosine, leucine, proline, and the activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and the duration of the E wave. In addition, the contents of both ECG and EGCG in three etiolated tea cultivars following injury by the tea leafhopper were found to be significantly elevated (P<0.05), with the highest levels observed in ‘Huanglongjin’. In conclusion, injury by E. onukii can induce changes in both volatile and non-volatile substances in tea leaves, thereby conferring resistance against leafhoppers. And differences in resistance were observed among three etiolated tea cultivars with ‘Huanglongjin’ showing the strongest resistance.

Light and nitrogen are crucial factors regulating plant energy metabolism, carbon-nitrogen balance, and stress resistance. In this study, tea plant ‘Zhongming 7’ was subjected to dark treatment and normal light treatment under nitrogen-deficient conditions. The results indicate that dark treatment resulted in a decrease in SPAD values and a noticeable lightening of leaf color. Transcriptome analysis identifies 3 235 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), with 1 492 upregulated and 1 743 downregulated. KEGG enrichment analysis reveals significant enrichment of DEGs in pathways related to nitrogen metabolism, plant circadian rhythms and phytohormone signaling. Among the identified DEGs, an Elongated Hypocotyl 5 (CsHY5) gene was screened for further investigation. Protein-protein interaction network analysis reveals that CsHY5 primarily interacts with circadian rhythm-related genes. The expression level of the CsHY5 gene in new shoot tissues of three tea cultivars was analyzed using quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR). The results reveals that the expression level of CsHY5 gene in the leaves of ‘Zhongming 7’ was higher than those observed in ‘Yunkang 10’ and ‘Hongya Foshou’. Transcriptome sequencing and RT-qPCR analysis indicate that the CsHY5 gene was downregulated under dark treatment. These findings suggest that CsHY5 may serve as a key node in the cross-regulation between light signaling and nitrogen metabolism, playing a crucial role in tea plants' response to combined dark treatment and nitrogen deficiency stress.

Tea plants, as a significant economic crops in China, are characterized by their preference for moisture and vulnerability to waterlogging. Currently, there is few research concerning the damage caused by waterlogging to tea plants and the post-waterlogging recovery measures, so the analysis of agronomic measures such as pruning is of great significance to the restoration of tea growth. Here, the effects of waterlogging stress on the growth of ‘JinXuan’ tea plants were analyzed, and disclosed that it can result in disruption of the rhizosphere micro-ecological equilibrium in roots of tea plants. Harmful microorganisms, such as anaerobic bacteria (including Azospira, Citrifermentans, etc.) and pathogenic fungi (Phaeomoniellales, Gibberella, etc.), accumulate in the roots. Meanwhile, it also decreases the expressions of related element transporter genes and element levels (Ca, K, Zn, P) in the roots of tea plants, while increases the content of Fe. The pruning approach can significantly increase the hundred-buds weight, length, widthand leaf area of the third leaves of waterlogged tea plants, thereby increasing the tea yield. It could promote the recovery of tea plants by enhancing the absorption and transport of nitrogen by the root system.

Phyllosphere microorganism play a critical role in plant disease resistance, yet their response mechanisms under pathogen infection require further exploration. This study investigated the structural and functional dynamics of phyllosphere microbial communities in healthy and infected leaves of Camellia sinensis cv. ‘Zhirenzao’ to elucidate their responses to pathogen invasion and potential roles in disease defense. In this study, we collected healthy and infected leaves, and analyzed them by high-throughput gene sequencing and microbiome analysis to identify primary pathogens, delineate bacterial and fungal community structures, and predict microbial functions. The results reveal that Fusarium and Pestalotia were the dominant pathogenic genera in the infected leaves A (IA) and B (IB), respectively. Both bacterial and fungal α-diversity were significantly higher in the infected leaves compared to those of healthy leaves (P<0.05), and the β-diversity analysis also reveals significant structural differences. In terms of species composition, the healthy leaves were dominated by Proteobacteria (79.9%), while the infected leaves were mainly composed of both Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria. Within the fungal communities, Dothideomycetes was a co-dominant class, while the infected leaves were dominated by Sordariomycetes, Agaricomycetes and Eurotiomycetes. LEfSe analysis further identified the significant differentiating species: the healthy leaves were dominated by potentially beneficial microbes like Trichococcus and Pseudomonas, whereas the infected leaves were primarily composed of pathogenic genera including Didymella, Plectosphaerella, Fusarium and Pestalotia. The results from functional prediction demonstrate that microbial functions in the healthy leaves were enriched for photosynthesis and carbon fixation pathways, while the infected leaves exhibited significant increase in pathways for bacterial chemotaxis, flagellar assembly and butyrate metabolism. FUNGuild annotation further reveals an increase in the proportion of plant pathogens, plant saprotrophs and wood saprotrophs in the diseased leaves, potentially reshaping the phyllosphere microbial community, where the proliferation of pathogens and decline of beneficial microbes may collectively impair host resistance. These findings provide a theoretical framework for understanding phyllosphere microbial functions in plant-pathogen interactions and establish a scientific basis for developing biocontrol strategies against tea plant diseases.

Tea [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze] is an important economic crop in China. Its production process is highly susceptible to stresses such as pests and diseases, which subsequently lead to a reduction in yield and quality. Accurate monitoring of stress conditions in tea garden is therefore essential for precision and smart management. This study focused on three typical stresses: tea geometrid (Ectropis obliqua), heat stress and anthracnose (Colletotrichum camelliae), and proposed a stepwise multi-stress monitoring method based on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote sensing. The research first focused on the characteristics of tea garden ridge-and-furrow structures. By combining a decision tree and edge detection (DT-ED) algorithm, which utilizes the RedEdge band, high-precision extraction of tea rows was achieved. Subsequently, considering the spatial distribution differences of stress within tea garden plots, a plot type discrimination model was constructed based on the coefficient of variation (CV) of the plot's spectrum and linear discriminant analysis (LDA). This model successfully categorized plots into entirely healthy plot (EHTP), entirely stressed plot (ESTP), and partially stressed plot (PSTP), achieving an overall accuracy of 94.7%. Based on this classification, a differentiated strategy was applied: UAV five-point sampling was used for stress assessment and health validation in ESTP and EHTP plots, while a two-step approach of “abnormal zone detection-stress type identification” was applied to PSTP plots. The abnormal zones were delineated using two-stage clustering strategy. Stress type classification was then carried out using algorithms such as support vector machine (SVM), k-nearest neighbors (KNN), and multilayer perceptron (MLP). The results show that the MLP achieved the best performance, with an overall accuracy of 92.3%. The findings demonstrate that the proposed multi-step monitoring method can effectively improve the accuracy and efficiency of multi-stress identification in tea garden, providing technical support for smart tea garden management and offering a methodological reference for other economic crops.

Tea grey blight is one of the most important diseases in tea producing areas in China, which is common in old leaves, mature leaves and young bud leaves. In this study, a strain L352 was isolated and purified from tea grey blight leaves in Duyun City, Guizhou. The strain L352 was identified based on morphological characteristics and a multi-gene phylogenetic tree was established using the ITS, β-tub and EF-1α genes. The results show that the conidia of strain L352 were mostly composed of 5 cells with 4 transverse-septa, featuring three pigmented cells in the middle. Occasionally, 6 cells with 5 transverse-septa were observed, containing four pigmented cells in the middle. The phylogenetic tree indicates that it was clustered into a relatively independent clade with Pestalotiopsis rosea, with a support rate of 100%. The pathogen was finally identified as Pestalotiopsis rosea, and it was the first discovery of this species causing tea grey blight disease in Camellia sinensis.

In June and July 2024, two Fusarium spp. strains were isolated from blighted leaves of tea plants (Camellia sinensis) in Motuo County, Linzhi City, Xizang, China. Species identification was conducted using morphological characteristics, multi-locus phylogenetic analysis, and Koch's postulates. The results identified the strains as Fusarium dracaenophilum and Fusarium asiaticum. Pathogenicity tests confirm that both species induce tea leaf blight. In varietal pathogenicity assays, ‘Zhonghuang 1’ exhibited significantly stronger resistance to both pathogens than ‘Fuding Dabaicha’. The results of the biological characterization reveal that F. asiaticum exhibits optimal growth conditions at temperatures ranging from 20 ℃ to 25 ℃ and at pH levels between 7 and 9. The presence of sucrose, maltose, lactose, and yeast extract has been demonstrated to stimulate F. asiaticum growth. F. dracaenophilum exhibits optimal growth at 25 ℃ and pH 7, with lactose and yeast extract being the most favorable nutrients. These findings enhanced understanding of Fusarium pathogen diversity and provided a theoretical basis for managing foliar diseases in tea plantations in Xizang.

To elucidate the aroma profile of Lushan Yunwu Tea, a Box-Behnken experimental design combined with response surface methodology was applied to optimize the headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) conditions, followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Additionally, olfactory receptors corresponding to the odorants were inferred from molecular structural features. Ligand-binding sites were predicted using machine-learning methods, and semi-flexible molecular docking was finally conducted for the odorant-olfactory receptor complexes. The results indicate that the optimal extraction conditions obtained by response surface optimization were as follows: sample weight 1.03 g, extraction time 43 min, and extraction temperature 73 ℃, with a validation error of 4.13%. A total of 87 volatile compounds belonging to ten chemical classes, including alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, were identified in Lushan Yunwu Tea. The key odorants with odor activity values (OAVs)≥1 were linalool, β-cyclocitral, geraniol, α-copaene, α-ionone and trans-β-ionone. Molecular docking reveals that all odorant-receptor pairs exhibited binding energies ≤﹣4.0 kcal·mol^-1. This study not only optimized the analytical method for profiling tea aroma, but also innovatively employed molecular docking to validate the key aroma-active constituents. The findings provided a foundation for elucidating the formation mechanisms of Lushan Yunwu Tea aroma and offered references for its processing optimization and quality assessment.

Plant exosome-like nanovesicles (ELNVs), as inherent components of plants, are nanoscale vesicles secreted by plant cells. They are inherently rich in bioactive compounds, and their vesicular structure makes them ideal “green” drug delivery vehicles. To overcome the limitations of single-source plant ELNVs, this study employed membrane fusion technology to combine tea ELNVs and Citrus reticulata ‘Chachiensis’ ELNVs for the first time, creating novel fusogenic nanovesicles. We subsequently characterized the physicochemical properties of novel fusogenic nanovesicles, elucidated their fundamental composition, assessed their stabilities in simulated digestive fluids, and evaluated their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor activities through cellular assays. The results indicate that the novel fusogenic nanovesicles are a reconstituted liposome integrating multiple functional components, including tea polyphenols (catechins), hesperetin, hesperidin, nobiletin, quercetin, active phospholipids and proteins. They exhibit a spherical morphology with a phospholipid bilayer structure, demonstrating good dispersibility with uniform particle size. Additionally, the novel fusogenic nanovesicles demonstrate excellent stability in both simulated gastric and intestinal fluids. Cell-based experimental results show that the novel fusogenic nanovesicles significantly alleviated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced oxidative stress damage and inflammatory responses in RAW264.7 cells, while exhibiting superior antitumor efficacy. The findings of this study not only provided novel insights into the application of natural plant ELNVs, but also established a scientific foundation for developing innovative multifunctional oral nutraceuticals.

To evaluate the potential of Weizmannia coagulans TMCC70717 isolated from the traditional Pu’er tea piling fermentation, the physiological characteristics of the strain were evaluated through morphological and physiological and biochemical experiments. The genome sequencing was conducted and the functional genes were annotated using COG, KEGG and GO databases. Pathogenicity was analyzed and safety was evaluated through drug resistance, hemolysis and acute oral toxicity tests in rats. The anti-hyperuricemia potential of the strain was evaluated through animal experiments. The mechanism of anti-hyperuricemia was revealed through in vitro xanthine oxidase activity inhibition experiments. The results indicate that TMCC70717 is gram-positive and rod-shaped, capable of fermenting substrates such as L-arabinose, D-ribose and D-xylose to produce acid. It exhibits no resistance to 11 common antibiotics, including amikacin, ampicillin and chloramphenicol. It has no hemolytic activity, and the genomic analysis confirmed its non-pathogenic nature with an LD₅₀>20 g·kg^-1 body weight in rats, classifying it as practically non-toxic. The anti-hyperuricemia evaluation demonstrates that oral administration at a dose of 1.0 g·kg^-1 for 28 days significantly reduced renal and hepatic damage compared to the control group, with a notable decrease in serum uric acid levels (P<0.05). The in vitro xanthine oxidase activity inhibition rate (OD₆₀₀=2) was (60.15±0.35)%. The research has revealed the edible safety of the tea-originating Weizmannia coagulans TMCC70717 and its protective effect on rats with hyperuricemia. Its uric acid-lowering effect is mediated by inhibiting the activity of xanthine oxidase, thereby reducing uric acid level. The final result is a decrease in serum uric acid levels. This study provided a theoretical foundation and scientific data for the exploration of microbial resources in traditional pile-fermented Pu’er tea and the development and utilization of functional Pu’er tea products.

This study adopted case analysis and comparative research methods, incorporating the eclectic theory of international production (OLI framework) to systematically explore the internationalization paths and realization mechanisms of Chinese novel tea beverage brands. Four representative brands including Heytea, Auntea Jenny, Wanglaoji, and Chagee were selected as typical cases to analyze four reprentative models: direct localized operation, brand licensing or franchising, product or raw material export, and bundled joint ventures. On this basis, by analyzing the differentiated combinations of ownership advantages, location choices, and degrees of internalization across different brands, this paper reveals the internal logic of how novel tea beverage enterprises build core competitiveness in foreign markets. The findings indicate that the dynamic trade-offs between these OLI dimensions determine the effectiveness of brand embedding under varied institutional distances. Currently, the industry faces common challenges such as cognitive gaps in consumption, standard certification barriers, and difficulties in localized team building. It is suggested that enterprises should establish global quality control systems and enhance brand value through cross-cultural narratives to achieve a strategic transition from overseas expansion to global symbiosis.

Low temperature stress significantly impairs the growth and development of tea plants (Camellia sinensis), as well as the yield and quality of tea. The WCOR413 gene family plays an important role in plant cold resistance. However, it has not yet been systematically identified in tea plants. This study employed pan-genome and cold acclimation transcriptome data of tea plants, combined with bioinformatics and RT-qPCR analysis, to identify members of the CsWCOR413 gene family. The results show that the CsWCOR413 family consists of six members (CsWCOR413-1 to CsWCOR413-6), which can be divided into two subclasses based on the conserved domains of the proteins: plasma membrane-localized and internal/thylakoid membrane-localized. Promoter cis-element analysis finds that the CsWCOR413 genes may be regulated by various transcription factors, enabling them to respond to cold, dehydration and ABA signals. RT-qPCR analysis reveals the expression patterns of the CsWCOR413 genes. CsWCOR413-1 was predominantly expressed in leaves, responded to JA and ABA signaling, and was significantly induced by low temperature stress. CsWCOR413-5 responded to short-term cold stress and calcium ion signaling. The transcriptome and Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) indicate that CsWCOR413-1 was significantly upregulated during natural cold acclimation and was strongly co-expressed with CsCBF3, a core transcription factor in cold signaling. Subcellular localization reveals that CsWCOR413-1 was localized in the cell membrane and cytoplasm. Dual-luciferase reporter assay confirms that CsCBF1 and CsCBF3 directly bound to the CsWCOR413-1 promoter and activated its expression. This study systematically elucidated the characteristics and expression profiles of the CsWCOR413 gene family and revealed that CsWCOR413-1 is transcriptionally regulated by CsCBF1 and CsCBF3, suggesting the crucial role of CsWCOR413-1 in tea plant under low temperature stress.

Anthocyanins, as vital plant secondary metabolites, contribute to pigmentation, pollinator attraction and stress resistance, significantly impacting plant development. This study elucidated the regulatory role of the R2R3-MYB transcription factor CsMYB75-like-2 in anthocyanin biosynthesis in tea plants (Camellia sinensis), utilizing the anthocyanin-rich cultivar ‘Zijuan’ as the material. Phylogenetic analysis reveals that CsMYB75-like-2 belongs to the SG6 subfamily of anthocyanin-related transcription factors. CsMYB75-like-2 is expressed at higher levels in purple tea cultivars than in green ones and is specifically enriched in young tissues. Its coding sequence remains highly conserved across cultivars. Subcellular localization confirmed its residence in the nuclear membrane, and yeast assays demonstrated its function as a transcriptional activator. Shade treatment experiments showed a positive correlation between CsMYB75-like-2 expression, its downstream genes (CsDFR and CsFLS) as well as anthocyanin accumulation. However, unlike CsMYB75-like-1, CsMYB75-like-2 does not directly bind to or activate the key anthocyanin biosynthesis gene CsANS. Instead, it forms an interactive regulatory network with other MYB family members, including CsMYB308 and CsMYB114. These findings provided crucial insights into the molecular mechanisms governing anthocyanin biosynthesis in tea plants and offer valuable targets for breeding enhanced purple tea cultivars.

To elucidate the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationships of tea germplasm resources in the Huaihua region and enhance the efficiency of local tea resource development and utilization, this study focused on 72 tea germplasm resources collected and preliminarily screened from the Huaihua area. Through systematic agronomic trait observation and screening, combined with whole-genome sequencing for single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) detection, an in-depth analysis was conducted on their population genetic structure, identity-by-descent (IBD), and genetic relationships. The results show that the 72 tea resources primarily consisted of large-leaf varieties (39 accessions) and medium-leaf varieties (31 accessions). Among them, 41 accessions had an amino acid content exceeding 5%, three exhibited a phenol-ammonia ratio above 10, and 61 had a ratio below 8. Correlation analysis reveals that bud length was significantly correlated with caffeine content (γ=0.862 8) and water extract (γ=0.871 8). Genomic analysis indicates that the 72 resources could be classified into two pure lineages and one admixed group. Specifically, the Zhongfang and Hongjiang groups clustered together, while the Jingzhou and Yuanling groups formed separate clusters. Using CoreHunter, 56 core germplasm resources were selected. This study provided an important theoretical foundation and material basis for the breeding of specialty Jietan tea cultivars and the innovative utilization of unique tea resources.

Camellia sinensis is a cross-pollinated plant. To explore the effect of xenia on tea seeds, this study conducted artificial pollination experiments using ‘Jincha 18’ as the maternal parent and cultivars including ‘Taicha’, ‘Lizaoxiang’‘Qianmei 1’‘Jiukengdaye’ and ‘Qianmei 809’ as the paternal parents. The differences in fruit set rate, economic traits and quality traits of tea seeds among different pollination combinations were compared, and principal component analysis (PCA) was employed for comprehensive evaluation. The results demonstrate xenia effects on multiple tea seed indicators under different paternal pollination treatments, including dry seed weight, dry kernel weight, oil content and fatty acid composition. Among the five pollination combinations, those with the paternal parents ‘Taicha’‘Qianmei 1’ and ‘Jiukengdaye’ exhibited significantly higher fruit set rates compared to the naturally pollinated control group. Seeds with ‘Qianmei 1’ as the paternal parent had comparable seed diameter, dry seed weight, and dry kernel weight to those of the naturally pollinated group, but significantly higher values than other pollination combinations. Seeds with ‘Taicha’ or ‘Lizaoxiang’ as the paternal parent had significantly higher oil content, total fatty acid content, and unsaturated fatty acid content than other pollination combinations. A comprehensive evaluation of six pollination combinations via principal component analysis reveals that combinations with ‘Taicha’ and ‘Lizaoxiang’ as the paternal parents, together with the naturally pollinated group, ranked among the top three in overall performance scores. Further analysis demonstrates that when used as a pollinizer for ‘Jincha 18’‘Taicha’ significantly increased both tea seed yield and quality parameters, concurrently enhancing fruit set rate , oil content and unsaturated fatty acid proportion.