In this study, we provide several new lines of evidence for the complex crosstalk between phosphate signaling and JA pathways in tea plants which is associated with increased catechin levels and improved quality.
The Arch Nemeses of the Nutritional World: Tea
Catechins, which are powerful compounds in tea and have long been associated with protecting against diabetes, cancer or cardiovascular diseases. Interestingly, the biosynthesis of plant hormones is strongly influenced by environmental cues, in particular the availability of phosphate (Pi).
However, it has been reported that phosphate deficiency is a major limiting factor in the soils of the tea growing regions and could have an influence over tea quality by perturbing the accumulation of these secondary metabolites [14]. The importance of this pressing issue has led to an immediate requirement revealing the molecular mechanisms in governing catechin biosynthesis with different nutrient conditions.
Balancing Phosphate-Jasmonate Circuitries
The researchers at the Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, who performed the recent study and published their data in Horticulture Research, decided to investigate how phosphate signaling interacted with jasmonate (JA) pathways within tea plants.
CsPHR1 and CsPHR2 (Phosphate Starvation Response, PHR), previously identified as two important phosphate signaling transcription factors by the researchers. Furthermore, the searched found CsJAZ3 (Jasmonate Zim Domain repressor in jasmonate pathway)
This study provides insights into the genetic control of tea quality at multiple levels, disentangling the complex interaction among these vital elements and how plants have evolved to adapt nutrient limitation with hormonal changes to regulate catechin content.
Conclusion
The discovery of the CsPHRs-CsJAZ3 regulatory module provides enormous prospects for the tea industry. They can potentially boost levels of catechins by manipulating these pathways to improve both the quality and health benefits of tea. These results could be very useful in developing efficient cultivation systems for the improvement of nutrient use efficiency, stress adaptation to environmental conditions and processing quality leading towards enhanced economic and nutritional value of tea as a future sustainable crop.
