scholarly journals Low Caffeine Content in Novel Grafted Tea with Camellia sinensis as Scions and Camellia oleifera as Stocks

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1934578X1501000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei-Wei Deng ◽  
Min Li ◽  
Chen-Chen Gu ◽  
Da-Xiang Li ◽  
Lin-Long Ma ◽  
...  

Caffeine, a purine alkaloid, is a major secondary metabolite in tea leaves. The demand for low caffeine tea is increasing in recent years, especially for health reasons. We report a novel grafted tea material with low caffeine content. The grafted tea plant had Camellia sinensis as scions and C. oleifera as stocks. The content of purine alkaloids was determined in the leaves of one-year-old grafted tea plants by HPLC. We also characterized caffeine synthase (CS), a key enzyme involved in caffeine biosynthesis in tea plants, at the expression level. The expression patterns of CS were examined in grafted and control leaves by Western blot, using a self-prepared polyclonal antibody with high specificity and sensitivity. The expression of related genes ( TCS1, tea caffeine synthase gene, GenBank accession No. AB031280; sAMS, SAM synthetase gene, AJ277206; TIDH, IMP dehydrogenase gene, EU106658) in the caffeine biosynthetic pathway was investigated by qRT-PCR. HPLC showed that the caffeine content was only 38% as compared with the non-grafted tea leaves. Immunoblotting analysis showed that CS protein decreased by half in the leaves of grafted tea plants. qRT-PCR revealed no significant changes in the expression of two genes in the upstream pathway ( sAMS and TIDH), while the expression of TCS1 was greatly decreased (50%). Taken together, these data revealed that the low caffeine content in the grafted tea leaves is due to low TCS1 expression and CS protein accumulation.

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (16) ◽  
pp. 5684 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaochen Zhou ◽  
Lanting Zeng ◽  
Yingjuan Chen ◽  
Xuewen Wang ◽  
Yinyin Liao ◽  
...  

In tea (Camellia sinensis) plants, polyphenols are the representative metabolites and play important roles during their growth. Among tea polyphenols, catechins are extensively studied, while very little attention has been paid to other polyphenols such as gallic acid (GA) that occur in tea leaves with relatively high content. In this study, GA was able to be transformed into methyl gallate (MG), suggesting that GA is not only a precursor of catechins, but also can be transformed into other metabolites in tea plants. GA content in tea leaves was higher than MG content—regardless of the cultivar, plucking month or leaf position. These two metabolites occurred with higher amounts in tender leaves. Using nonaqueous fractionation techniques, it was found that GA and MG were abundantly accumulated in peroxisome. In addition, GA and MG were found to have strong antifungal activity against two main tea plant diseases, Colletotrichum camelliae and Pseudopestalotiopsis camelliae-sinensis. The information will advance our understanding on formation and biologic functions of polyphenols in tea plants and also provide a good reference for studying in vivo occurrence of specialized metabolites in economic plants.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (22) ◽  
pp. 12554
Author(s):  
Yongchen Yu ◽  
Yuxian Xing ◽  
Fengjing Liu ◽  
Xin Zhang ◽  
Xiwang Li ◽  
...  

Laccase (LAC) plays important roles in different plant development and defense processes. In this study, we identified laccase genes (CsLACs) in Camellia sinensis cv ‘Longjing43′ cultivars, which were classified into six subclades. The expression patterns of CsLACs displayed significant spatiotemporal variations across different tissues and developmental stages. Most members in subclades II, IV and subclade I exhibited contrasting expression patterns during leaf development, consistent with a trade-off model for preferential expression in the early and late developmental stages. The extensive transcriptional changes of CsLACs under different phytohormone and herbivore treatment were observed and compared, with the expression of most genes in subclades I, II and III being downregulated but genes in subclades IV, V and VI being upregulated, suggesting a growth and defense trade-off model between these subclades. Taken together, our research reveal that CsLACs mediate multi-perspective trade-offs during tea plant development and defense processes and are involved in herbivore resistance in tea plants. More in-depth research of CsLACs upstream regulation and downstream targets mediating herbivore defense should be conducted in the future.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuecheng Zhao ◽  
Xiangsheng Zeng ◽  
Ning Lin ◽  
Shuwei Yu ◽  
Alisdair R. Fernie ◽  
...  

AbstractUnder high light conditions or UV radiation, tea plant leaves produce more flavonols, which contribute to the bitter taste of tea; however, neither the flavonol biosynthesis pathways nor the regulation of their production are well understood. Intriguingly, tea leaf flavonols are enhanced by UV-B but reduced by shading treatment. CsFLS, CsUGT78A14, CsMYB12, and CsbZIP1 were upregulated by UV-B radiation and downregulated by shading. CsMYB12 and CsbZIP1 bound to the promoters of CsFLS and CsUGT78A14, respectively, and activated their expression individually. CsbZIP1 positively regulated CsMYB12 and interacted with CsMYB12, which specifically activated flavonol biosynthesis. Meanwhile, CsPIF3 and two MYB repressor genes, CsMYB4 and CsMYB7, displayed expression patterns opposite to that of CsMYB12. CsMYB4 and CsMYB7 bound to CsFLS and CsUGT78A14 and repressed their CsMYB12-activated expression. While CsbZIP1 and CsMYB12 regulated neither CsMYB4 nor CsMYB7, CsMYB12 interacted with CsbZIP1, CsMYB4, and CsMYB7, but CsbZIP1 did not physically interact with CsMYB4 or CsMYB7. Finally, CsPIF3 bound to and activated CsMYB7 under shading to repress flavonol biosynthesis. These combined results suggest that UV activation and shading repression of flavonol biosynthesis in tea leaves are coordinated through a complex network involving CsbZIP1 and CsPIF3 as positive MYB activators and negative MYB repressors, respectively. The study thus provides insight into the regulatory mechanism underlying the production of bitter-tasting flavonols in tea plants.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (12) ◽  
pp. 3938 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-Hui Sun ◽  
Chin-Ying Yang ◽  
Jason Tzen

Tea (Camellia sinensis L.) contains abundant secondary metabolites, which are regulated by numerous enzymes. Hydroxycinnamoyl transferase (HCT) is involved in the biosynthesis pathways of polyphenols and flavonoids, and it can catalyze the transfer of hydroxyconnamoyl coenzyme A to substrates such as quinate, flavanol glycoside, or anthocyanins, thus resulting in the production of chlorogenic acid or acylated flavonol glycoside. In this study, the CsHCT gene was cloned from the Chin-Shin Oolong tea plant, and its protein functions and characteristics were analyzed. The full-length cDNA of CsHCT contains 1311 base pairs and encodes 436 amino acid sequences. Amino acid sequence was highly conserved with other HCTs from Arabidopsis thaliana, Populus trichocarpa, Hibiscus cannabinus, and Coffea canephora. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that CsHCT is highly expressed in the stem tissues of both tea plants and seedlings. The CsHCT expression level was relatively high at high altitudes. The abiotic stress experiment suggested that low temperature, drought, and high salinity induced CsHCT transcription. Furthermore, the results of hormone treatments indicated that abscisic acid (ABA) induced a considerable increase in the CsHCT expression level. This may be attributed to CsHCT involvement in abiotic stress and ABA signaling pathways.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yufeng Shi ◽  
Xiaolan Jiang ◽  
Linbo Chen ◽  
Wei-Wei Li ◽  
Sanyan Lai ◽  
...  

Flavonoids, including flavonol derivatives, are the main astringent compounds of tea and are beneficial to human health. Many researches have been conducted to comprehensively identify and characterize the phenolic compounds in the tea plant. However, the biological function of tea flavonoids is not yet understood, especially those accumulated in floral organs. In this study, the metabolic characteristics of phenolic compounds in different developmental stages of flower buds and various parts of the tea flower were investigated by using metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses. Targeted metabolomic analysis revealed varying accumulation patterns of different phenolic polyphenol compounds during flowering; moreover, the content of flavonol compounds gradually increased as the flowers opened. Petals and stamens were the main sites of flavone and flavonol accumulation. Compared with those of fertile flowers, the content of certain flavonols, such as kaempferol derivatives, in anthers of hybrid sterile flowers was significantly low. Transcriptomic analysis revealed different expression patterns of genes in the same gene family in tea flowers. The CsFLSb gene was significantly increased during flowering and was highly expressed in anthers. Compared with fertile flowers, CsFLSb was significantly downregulated in sterile flowers. Further functional verification of the three CsFLS genes indicated that CsFLSb caused an increase in flavonol content in transgenic tobacco flowers and that CsFLSa acted in leaves. Taken together, this study highlighted the metabolic properties of phenolic compounds in tea flowers and determined how the three CsFLS genes have different functions in the vegetative and reproductive organs of tea plants. Furthermore, CsFLSb could regulated flavonol biosynthesis in tea flowers, thus influencing fertility. This research is of great significance for balancing the reproductive growth and vegetative growth of tea plants.


HortScience ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 651-655 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liping Zhang ◽  
Chen Shen ◽  
Jipeng Wei ◽  
Wenyan Han

6-Benzyladenine (6-BA) is a safe and efficient cytokinin. The adult tea plants of the cv. Longjing 43 were used in this study. The foliar portion of tea bushes were sprayed with different concentrations (50, 100, 200, or 400 mg·L−1) of 6-BA after heavy pruning, when three to four leaves grew out in late May. The effects of 6-BA application on the growth of the new shoots and lateral branches were quantified. After 5 months, treatments with 50, 100, 200, or 400 mg·L−1 6-BA suppressed plant height by 11.0%, 18.0%, 21.0%, or 22.0%, respectively; 6-BA at 100, 200, or 400 mg·L−1 decreased the number of lateral branches by 20.0%, 23.0%, or 18.0%, respectively. Meanwhile, treatments with 50, 200, or 400 mg·L−1 6-BA increased the length of lateral branches by 38.0%, 79.0%, or 81.0% respectively; 200 mg·L−1 6-BA increased the diameter of lateral branches by 8.0%. In addition, after 2 months, 50 or 200 mg·L−1 6-BA did not significantly affect the growth of functional leaves, 50, 100, or 200 mg·L−1 6-BA did not significantly affect photosynthetic rate (Pn) as compared with the control. Furthermore, 200 or 400 mg·L−1 6-BA significantly increased spring tea yield by 28.9% or 13.3%, respectively as compared with the control. In conclusion, 6-BA at the four concentrations promoted dwarfing and the formation of productive lateral branches and increased the spring yield, and 200 mg·L−1 6-BA exerted the best comprehensive effect.


2018 ◽  
Vol 159 ◽  
pp. 02025 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eflita Yohana ◽  
Mohammad Endy Yulianto ◽  
Shofwan Bahar ◽  
Azza Alifa Muhammad ◽  
Novi Laura Indrayani

Tea plants in Indonesia are derived from Carmelia sinensis var. assamica which contain catechin in quite high amount compared with other countries tea plant. Green tea is made by inactivating the oxidase / phenolase enzyme that presents in the fresh tea leaf buds from tea garden, by using hot steam to prevent the oxidation of the catechins. Drying process to reduce the moisture of tea, one of the method is by utilizing the dry air from dehumidification process. Liquid desiccant made from 50% concentration of CaCl2, the temperature is lowered to 10 °C and sprayed into the air stream which contains water vapor by using a 0.2 mm spraying nozzle so that mass transfer and latent heat occur in the dehumidifier. The result of air dehumidification process used for drying tea leaves. The air is able to dry the tea leaves from the weight of 58 grams to 47 grams. Then the liquid desiccant dehumidification process will be streamed into the humidifier, where the liquid desiccant regeneration process will have change into the initial concentration. The result of air humidification process has an average absolute humidity rise of 0.07 g/kg. The liquid desiccant regeneration process that happened continuously reaching the saturation point at 280 minutes. It can be concluded that the process of dehumidification-humidification is a fairly effective method for drying the tea leaves.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Yadav KC ◽  
Ashok Parajuli ◽  
Bishnu Bahadur Khatri ◽  
Lila Devi Shiwakoti

Tea is a popular drink with refreshing and functional properties. Bud, 1st leaf, and 2nd leaf of five varieties of tea clones (Gumti Takda-78, Ambari, Chiniya, and Tinali, which are popular in tea plantation area of Nepal) were collected and used for preparing green and orthodox black tea to study antioxidant activity, phytochemicals profile, chemical content, and sensory parameters. One or two leaves were hand-plucked from each bush to get a sample of about 100 leaves and processed for green and orthodox black tea for different clones of tea plants. Phytochemicals, antioxidant activity, and caffeine content were found higher in bud followed by 1st leaf and 2nd leaf for all clones of tea plants. Both types of tea (green and black) from Gumti were significantly (p<0.05) higher having tannin content, flavonoid content, total polyphenol content, caffeine content, and IC50 value of 49.15 and 36.23 (mg GAE/g dry extract), 358.9 and 350.4 (mg QE/g dry extract), 590.5 and 570 (mg GAE/g dry extract), 2.85 and 2.94%, and 45.15 & 51.88 μg/mL, respectively. Green and orthodox tea from Takda-78 was found higher in caffeine content and the least in Tinali for both types of tea. Moisture, water extract, total ash, acid-insoluble ash, and crude fiber content in tea (green and black) from Gumti were found to be 5.4% & 5.37%, 65.89% & 71.46%, 5.524% & 6.52%, 0.46% & 0.57%, and 7.96% & 10.27%, respectively. The ratio of theaflavin and thearubigin (TF : TR) was found 1 : 8.61, 1 : 9.36, 1 : 9.70, 1 : 12.87, and 1 : 6.36 in Takda-78, Ambari, Gumti, Chiniya, and Tinali respectively. The total quality score in green tea (85.13%) and black tea (85.78%) from Gumti was significantly higher than others. Phytochemicals and antioxidant properties of green tea were significantly (p<0.05) higher than those of orthodox black tea for all clones of tea plant. This study suggests Gumti variety to be used in green and orthodox black tea processing for higher phytochemical, chemical, sensory quality, and antioxidant activity.


2012 ◽  
Vol 610-613 ◽  
pp. 181-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Hua Duan ◽  
Xiao Fei Hu ◽  
Fu Sheng Chen ◽  
Ze Yuan Deng

The effects of simulated acid rain and aluminum (Al) addition on growth and photosynthesis physiology of tea plants (Camellia sinensis L.) were studied with tea seedlings in a hydroculture experiment. Results showed that the growth of tea plant, chlorophyll content, and photosynthesis (Pn) of tea leaves were better in the treatments of suitable Al addition (10 mg/L and/or 20 mg/L) than the treatments without Al addition and higher Al addition (30 mg/L). The growth of tea plant increased with increasing acidity of acid rain, while the leaves of tea plant showed more chlorophyll content and higher Pn at the treatment of pH 4.0 than pH 5.0 and pH 3.0 acid solutions. The growth of tea plant, chlorophyll content and Pn were the best at the combined treatment of suitable Al addition (10~20 mg/L) and moderate acidity of acid rain (pH 4.0), while the slowest at the combined treatment of 30 mg/L Al and pH 3.0 acid rain. These results suggested that suitable Al and moderate acidity of acid rain are helpful to increase tea production by increasing photosynthesis capacity.


Author(s):  
Arif Ridho Lubis ◽  
Santi Prayudani ◽  
Muharman Lubis ◽  
Al Khowarizmi

The tea plants (Camellia Sinensis) are small tree species that use leaves and leaf buds to produce tea harvested through a monoculture system. It is an agriculture practice to cultivate one types of crop or livestock, variety or breed on a farm annually. Moreover, the emergence of pests, pathogens and diseases cause serious damages to tea plants significantly to its productivity and quality to optimum worst. All parts of the tea plant such as leaves, stems, roots, flowers and fruits are exposed to these harm lead to loss of yield 7 until 10% per year. The intensity of these attacks vary greatly on particular climate, the degree slope and the plant material used. Therefore, this study analyzes tea leaves as a common part used in recipes to create unique taste and flavor in tea production, especially in agro-industry. The decision making method used is Fuzzy Mamdani Inference as one of model with functional hierarchy with initial input based on established criteria. Fuzzy logic will provide tolerance to the set of value, so that small changes will not result in significant category differences, only affect the membership level on the variable value. Previous method using probabilities have shown 78% tea leaves have been attacked by category C (Gray Blight) while using Mamdani indicated 86% of tea leaves have been infected. In this case, this result pointed out that Fuzzy Mamdani Inferences have more optimal result compare to the previous method.


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