Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’)
Tea plant [<i>Camellia sinensis</i> (L.) O. Kuntze] is an economically important evergreen crop cultivated worldwide. While most tea plants have green leaves, albino cultivars with yellow or white young leaves have attracted growing interest due to their elevated levels of L-theanine, a...
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2025-06-01
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| author | Yun-Suk Kwon Su Jin Kim Ha Rim Hong Byung-Hyuk Kim Eun Young Song Chun Hwan Kim Liang Chen Doo-Gyung Moon |
| author_facet | Yun-Suk Kwon Su Jin Kim Ha Rim Hong Byung-Hyuk Kim Eun Young Song Chun Hwan Kim Liang Chen Doo-Gyung Moon |
| author_sort | Yun-Suk Kwon |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Tea plant [<i>Camellia sinensis</i> (L.) O. Kuntze] is an economically important evergreen crop cultivated worldwide. While most tea plants have green leaves, albino cultivars with yellow or white young leaves have attracted growing interest due to their elevated levels of L-theanine, a key compound that enhances the umami flavor and overall quality of green tea. In this study, we characterized the morphological and biochemical traits of a novel albino tea cultivar, ‘Geumda’, developed in Korea. ‘Geumda’ exhibited yellow young shoots during the first flush and smaller leaves compared to the green-leaf standard cultivar, ‘Sangmok’. Although the catechin content of ‘Geumda’ was lower than that of ‘Sangmok’, it exhibited significantly higher levels of total amino acids, L-theanine, and arginine by 2.1-, 2.0-, and 9.8-fold, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy and gene expression analysis revealed that the elevated amino acid content in ‘Geumda’ was associated with impaired chloroplast development, leading to reduced chlorophyll content and diminished photosynthetic capacity. These findings suggest that ‘Geumda’, with its high concentrations of theanine and arginine and its impaired chloroplast development, represents a valuable genetic resource for the production of functional green teas enriched in umami flavor and beneficial health properties. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e7d7100d6cbd43aabefdbd0573d61672 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2311-7524 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| spelling | doaj-art-e7d7100d6cbd43aabefdbd0573d616722025-08-20T03:36:11ZengMDPI AGHorticulturae2311-75242025-06-0111774710.3390/horticulturae11070747Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’)Yun-Suk Kwon0Su Jin Kim1Ha Rim Hong2Byung-Hyuk Kim3Eun Young Song4Chun Hwan Kim5Liang Chen6Doo-Gyung Moon7Research Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaTea Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 9 South Meiling Road, Hangzhou 310008, ChinaResearch Institute of Climate Change and Agriculture, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Jeju 63240, Republic of KoreaTea plant [<i>Camellia sinensis</i> (L.) O. Kuntze] is an economically important evergreen crop cultivated worldwide. While most tea plants have green leaves, albino cultivars with yellow or white young leaves have attracted growing interest due to their elevated levels of L-theanine, a key compound that enhances the umami flavor and overall quality of green tea. In this study, we characterized the morphological and biochemical traits of a novel albino tea cultivar, ‘Geumda’, developed in Korea. ‘Geumda’ exhibited yellow young shoots during the first flush and smaller leaves compared to the green-leaf standard cultivar, ‘Sangmok’. Although the catechin content of ‘Geumda’ was lower than that of ‘Sangmok’, it exhibited significantly higher levels of total amino acids, L-theanine, and arginine by 2.1-, 2.0-, and 9.8-fold, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy and gene expression analysis revealed that the elevated amino acid content in ‘Geumda’ was associated with impaired chloroplast development, leading to reduced chlorophyll content and diminished photosynthetic capacity. These findings suggest that ‘Geumda’, with its high concentrations of theanine and arginine and its impaired chloroplast development, represents a valuable genetic resource for the production of functional green teas enriched in umami flavor and beneficial health properties.https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/7/747albinochloroplasttea planttheanineyellow leaves |
| spellingShingle | Yun-Suk Kwon Su Jin Kim Ha Rim Hong Byung-Hyuk Kim Eun Young Song Chun Hwan Kim Liang Chen Doo-Gyung Moon Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) Horticulturae albino chloroplast tea plant theanine yellow leaves |
| title | Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) |
| title_full | Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) |
| title_fullStr | Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) |
| title_short | Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics of a Novel Albino Tea Cultivar (<i>Camellia sinensis</i> ‘Geumda’) |
| title_sort | morphological and biochemical characteristics of a novel albino tea cultivar i camellia sinensis i geumda |
| topic | albino chloroplast tea plant theanine yellow leaves |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/7/747 |
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