CsYABBY1 and CsMYB114 Enhance Acquired Drought Tolerance by Mediating Flavonoid Biosynthesis in Camellia sinensis.

ABSTRACT: Drought priming is a critical agronomic strategy for enhancing plant drought tolerance, yet the optimal priming intensity and transcriptional regulatory mechanisms underlying subsequent drought responses in the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) remain poorly characterised. In this study, we systematically evaluated tea plants exposed to recurrent drought stress under varying priming intensities. Results demonstrated that moderate drought priming specifically conferred superior drought tolerance compared to non-primed controls. Integrated metabolomic and transcriptomic profiling identified flavonoid biosynthesis as the key pathway associated with priming-induced drought resilience. Exogenous flavonoid application and overexpression of six biosynthesis genes (CsCHS, CsCHI, CsFLS, CsDFR, CsANS an

SUBMITTER: Tian C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12946479 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature