Determining the influence of tree age on tea quality-related metabolites in <i>Camellia tachangensis</i> var. remotiserrata by integrating metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses.

ABSTRACT: While tea tree age is generally considered to influence the quality of black tea, the relationship between tree age and tea quality is unclear. We examine relationships between tree age and key metabolite contents related to tea quality in new leaves of the wild arbor-type tea Camellia tachangensis var. remotiserrata. We report tree age to directly affect metabolic divergence in leaves in spring. Compared with 10-y-old trees, the leaves of 80- and 800-y-old trees have higher flavonoid contents; total soluble sugar, polyphenol, and total amino acid contents are largely unaffected by tree age, but levels of specific amino acids (e.g., theanine, glutamate, and isoleucine) decline in older trees. Metabolome analysis reveals 202 of 1041 identified compounds (primarily flavonoids, phenoli

SUBMITTER: Shi Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12640977 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature