Journal of Tea Science Research, 2025, Vol.15, No.1, 12-20 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/jtsr 14 line selection and accelerating the improvement of such traits in breeding programs (Kong et al., 2025). Genome prediction models are increasingly complementing traditional methods to enable more efficient selection for quality traits such as metabolites catechins and caffeine (Yamashita et al., 2020; Lubanga et al., 2021). Figure 1 Diagram of the role or contribution of multiple perspective-based techniques to tea plants breeding. lmage was created with the tools of BioRender (https://app.biorender.com/(accessed on 28 June 2023)) (Adopted from Li et al., 2023a) 3.2 Practices in breeding disease and pest-resistant, stress-tolerant varieties Conventional breeding has depended on selecting naturally disease-resistant, pest-resistant, and environmentally stress-tolerant individuals. Exploitation of diverse germplasm, including wild relatives, has assisted in the formation of stress-resistant cultivars, although constraints such as low cross-compatibility exist (Mukhopadhyay et al., 2015; Ranatunga, 2019). Marker-assisted selection and QTL mapping are increasingly being used to screen for and introgress the resistance trait into breeding programs (Xu et al., 2018; Malebe et al., 2021). 3.3 Development of specialty cultivars for green tea, black tea, oolong tea, etc. Traditional breeding has allowed for the identification and propagation of cultivars specific to green, black, and oolong teas, among other tea types. Biochemical profiling coupled with sensory evaluation and genetic analysis has enabled the development of cultivars with unique flavor profiles and processing amenability (Kong et al., 2025). GWAS and metabolite profiling have revealed genetic variations linked to specialty traits, enabling targeted breeding of tea products (Kong et al., 2025). 3.4 Utilization of regional adaptability and eco-type germplasm resources Regional eco-types and germplasm resources have been at the core of breeding programs to guarantee local condition adaptability and retention of genetic diversity. Population genetic research reveals widespread genetic divergence and adaptation among tea accessions from different regions and provide a rich resource for breeding regionally adapted cultivars (Kong et al., 2025). Use of wild and local germplasm continues to add to the resilience and sustainability of tea production systems (Li et al., 2023b).
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