International Journal of Molecular Ecology and Conservation, 2025, Vol.15, No.6, 294-302 http://ecoevopublisher.com/index.php/ijmec 294 Review and Progress Open Access Breeding Challenges and Improvement Strategies in Yellow Pitaya: Enhancing Cultivation Efficiency and Disease Resistance YepingHan 1, Haimei Wang2 1 Institute of Life Sciences, Jiyang Colloge of Zhejiang A&F University, Zhuji, 311800, Zhejiang, China 2 Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China Corresponding email: haimei.wang@hitar.org International Journal of Molecular Ecology and Conservation, 2025, Vol.15, No.5 doi: 10.5376/ijmec.2025.15.0030 Received: 07 Oct., 2025 Accepted: 27 Nov., 2025 Published: 13 Dec., 2025 Copyright © 2025 Han and Wang, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Han Y.P., and Wang H.M., 2025, Breeding challenges and improvement strategies in yellow pitaya: enhancing cultivation efficiency and disease resistance, International Journal of Molecular Ecology and Conservation, 15(5): 294-302 (doi: 10.5376/ijmec.2025.15.0030) Abstract This study systematically analyzed the key challenges in the breeding process of bird's nest fruit, including the narrow genetic background of germplasm resources, low cultivation efficiency and insufficient disease resistance, and proposed targeted improvement strategies. Specifically, they include: improving cultivation efficiency by regulating flowering genes and breeding germplasm with strong self-compatibility; shortening the breeding cycle by using molecular marker-assisted selection (MAS) and tissue culture technology; exploring disease resistance genes in wild or local germplasm, and applying gene editing technology (such as CRISPR/Cas9) to improve the disease resistance of plants. In addition, the study emphasizes the integrated integration of breeding and cultivation technology, such as establishing a high-throughput phenotyping platform, breeding for facility environment adaptability, and developing specialty varieties that meet market demand. This study provides a clear breeding idea and technical path for the genetic improvement of bird's nest fruit varieties, which has important theoretical and practical significance for promoting the sustainable development of the bird's nest fruit industry and increasing farmers' income. KeywordsYellow pitaya; Breeding strategy; Cultivation efficiency; Disease resistance; Gene editing 1 Introduction Yellow pitaya (dragon fruit) has rapidly gained prominence as a tropical specialty fruit, driven by its unique appearance, nutritional value, and expanding global market demand (Jiang et al., 2011). As consumer interest and cultivation areas increase, yellow pitaya is emerging as a valuable crop for both producers and consumers. The yellow pitaya industry has broad prospects, but the hidden problems cannot be ignored. The mixed varieties and lack of identification system directly lead to the overall weak disease resistance and high planting and management costs (Nashima et al., 2021). The fruit quality is sometimes good and sometimes bad, it is sensitive to environmental changes, and pests and diseases occur frequently - these factors are superimposed, further compressing production benefits (Jiang et al., 2011; Khokhar et al., 2023). The shortage of germplasm resources and the continuous threat of biological and abiotic stresses to production have made variety improvement more urgent. Genetic improvement is the core means to break the current deadlock. The integrated application of genome analysis, molecular marker-assisted selection and in vitro culture technology has injected new momentum into accelerating the breeding process (Rahman et al., 2015; Nashima et al., 2021; Tel-Zur, 2022; Khokhar et al., 2023; Zaman et al., 2024). These innovative methods are expected to breed new varieties with outstanding stress resistance and stable traits, but their large-scale application still requires a systematic breeding system to be realized. This study will comprehensively analyze the current challenges facing yellow pitaya breeding, including variety identification, disease resistance, and cultivation efficiency. It will evaluate recent technological advances and breeding strategies, such as molecular marker development, genome sequencing, and organogenesis protocols, and propose future improvement directions. This study aims to guide researchers and breeders to achieve more efficient and sustainable yellow pitaya cultivation.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNA==