Plant Gene and Trait 2025, Vol.16, No.5, 215-224 http://genbreedpublisher.com/index.php/pgt 222 sustainable agriculture and urban landscape construction. Breeding early-flowering, stress-resistant and nutrient-rich varieties can not only enhance economic benefits, but also promote wetland protection and urban ecosystem diversity (Lin et al., 2019; Jiang et al., 2023). The superhydrophobicity of lotus leaves and the long lifespan of seeds also make it potentially useful in rainwater management, ecological restoration and landscaping (Gowthami et al., 2021). In the future, lotus breeding needs to better integrate ecological agriculture and sustainable urban development, and promote multi-functional utilization. 9.3 Prospects for global collaboration and germplasm innovation Genetic diversity and germplasm innovation are the foundation of comprehensive lotus breeding. Nowadays, basic research and applied development are becoming increasingly active worldwide, and multi-level data platforms such as genomics, phenotypes and metabolomics have been established (Li et al., 2021; Sun et al., 2025). Strengthening international resource sharing, joint breeding and data intercommunication is conducive to breaking through the limitations of innovation in a single region and promoting the global application of new lotus varieties (Lin et al., 2019; Li et al., 2021; Sun et al., 2025). Meanwhile, in the face of problems such as habitat loss and overexploitation, it is also necessary to promote protective breeding and diversity maintenance to ensure the long-term development of the lotus industry (Gowthami et al., 2021). Acknowledgments GenBreed Publisher thanks Professor Xie and two anonymous peer reviewers for their comments on the manuscript of this study. Conflict of Interest Disclosure The authors affirm that this research was conducted without any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. References Deng J., Li J., Su M., Lin Z., Chen L., and Yang P., 2020, AbHLHgene NnTT8 of Nelumbo nucifera regulates anthocyanin biosynthesis, Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, 158: 518-523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plaphy.2020.11.038 Escaray F., Passeri V., Babuin F., Marco F., Carrasco P., Damiani F., Pieckenstain F., Paolocci F., and Ruiz O., 2014, Lotus tenuis ×L. corniculatus interspecific hybridization as a means to breed bloat-safe pastures and gain insight into the genetic control of proanthocyanidin biosynthesis in legumes, BMC Plant Biology, 14: 40. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2229-14-40 Gao Z., Liang Y., Wang Y., Xiao Y., Chen J., Yang X., and Shi T., 2022, Genome-wide association study of traits in sacred lotus uncovers MITE-associated variants underlying stamen petaloid and petal number variations, Frontiers in Plant Science, 13: 973347. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2022.973347 Giovannini A., Laura M., Nesi B., Savona M., and Cardi T., 2021, Genes and genome editing tools for breeding desirable phenotypes in ornamentals, Plant Cell Reports, 40: 461-478. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-020-02632-x Gowthami R., Sharma N., Pandey R., and Agrawal A., 2021, A model for integrated approach to germplasm conservation of Asian lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.), Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution, 68: 1269-1282. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10722-021-01111-w Gui S., Peng J., Wang X., Wu Z., Cao R., Salse J., Zhang H., Zhu Z., Xia Q., Quan Z., Shu L., Ke W., and Ding Y., 2018, Improving Nelumbo nucifera genome assemblies using high‐resolution genetic maps and BioNano genome mapping reveals ancient chromosome rearrangements, The Plant Journal, 94: 721-734. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.13894 He J., Ma Y., Liu Q., Zhang R., Huang G., Zhang D., Liu F., and Yang C., 2025, Comparative transcriptomics of two petal variants reveals key functional genes underlying petal shape development in lotus (Nelumbo), Frontiers in Plant Science, 16: 1596925. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2025.1596925 Hu H., Zhang R., Zhao Y., Yang J., Zhao H., Zhao L., Wang L., Cheng Z., Zhao W., Wang B., Larkin R., and Chen L., 2024, Cell wall remodeling confers plant architecture with distinct wall structure in Nelumbo nucifera, The Plant Journal, 120(4): 1392-1409. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.17056 Hu J., Gui S., Zhu Z., Wang X., Ke W., and Ding Y., 2015, Genome-wide identification of SSR and SNP markers based on whole-genome re-sequencing of a Thailand wild sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera), PLoS One, 10(11): e0143765. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0143765
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