Genetic & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Molecular Biology

• Development and Application of Insertion-Deletion（InDel）Markers in Gannan wild Fortunella hindsii Based on Whole Genome Re-sequencing Data
• LUO Sifang, YAN Xiang, XIE Lifang, SUN Jingxian, GUO Zijing, ZHANG Zuming, CHEN Zhaoxing
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 267-278. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0357
• Abstract ( 251 ) HTML ( 161 ) PDF (2040KB) ( 161 ) 　　　

• To clarify the InDel characteristics of Gannan（Southern Jiangxi Province）wild Fortunella hindsii，99 Gannan wild F. hindsii were selected for whole genome resequencing，and then InDel variant sites were screened to develop InDel markers. A total of 590.58 Mb valid fragment data was obtained，and 211 470 InDels were detected，including 98 043 insertions and 113 427 deletions. From 8 760 InDel markers with Insertion or Deletion base numbers greater than 10 180 polymorphic markers with uniform distribution on chromosomes were selected，and 58 pairs of InDel primers with good amplification bands were developed. The findings of 58 pairs of InDel markers demonstrated a similar grouping pattern with the clustering results obtained from whole genome resequencing. Additionally，the 99 Gannan wild F. count of core InDel marker sites and alleles present in each germplasm，a total of 29 Gannan wild F. hindsii were selected as the core germplasm. These germplasm samples had a genome coverage of 99.7%. Among them，Jiahu，Yukeng，and Caifang were recognised as the core germplasm regions. The DNA fingerprint was created by integrating the entire genome resequencing data with the core InDel marker sites. This fingerprint contains coding information such as plant number，genotype，mutation locus，and agronomic trait data. This study aimed to elucidate the InDel characteristics of Gannan wild F. hindsii. The identified InDel markers have potential applications in population structure analysis，core germplasm screening，and DNA fingerprint construction.

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• Proteomics Studies on the Early Stages of Botrytis cinerea Infection in Grapevine Leaves
• ZHAO Yulei, LI Shan, LI Chengnan, MA Jinlong, MA Hongyi, YIN Xiao
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 279-291. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0264
• Abstract ( 153 ) HTML ( 77 ) PDF (3345KB) ( 77 ) 　　　

• Inoculating young leaves of susceptible Vitis vinifera‘Pinot Noir’and highly resistant V. amurensis‘Shuangyou’with Botrytis cinerea and treating them with sterile water as the control，label-free quantitative proteomics technology were used to analyze the differentially expressed proteins in the initial stage of B. cinerea infection（Inoculation for 12 h）. A total of 12 210 proteins were identified from the two grapevine cultivars. In‘Pinot Noir’，868 differentially expressed proteins were detected，while 1 946 differentially expressed proteins were detected in‘Shuangyou’. Through Gene Ontology（GO）and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG）enrichment analyses，it was determined that differentially expressed proteins were primarily enriched in metabolic pathways，secondary metabolite biosynthesis，and amino acid metabolism，among other signaling pathways. A total of 10 key differently expressed proteins were screened from the two grapevine varieties，and the expression levels of peroxidase，glutathione transferase，lipoxygenase，aldehyde dehydrogenase and stilbene synthase were up-regulated，while the expression levels of NADH dehydrogenase and carbonic anhydrase were down-regulated in highly resistant V. amurensis‘Shuangyou’. The above proteins play an important role in the infection of ‘Shuangyou’leaves by B. cinerea. Peroxidase was also expressed in the susceptible V. vinifera‘Pinot Noir’，indicating that peroxidase was an important differently expressed protein in the early stage of B. cinerea infection in grapevine leaves.

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• Functional Studies of Pineapple AcKNOX1 on Leaf Margin Development
• JING Yonglin, CHEN Langxin, LI Junguo, WANG Jiabin, WANG Xiaobing, YANG Qingquan, MENG Chunyang, XU Li
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 292-308. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0304
• Abstract ( 139 ) HTML ( 58 ) PDF (6934KB) ( 58 ) 　　　

• In this study，AcKNOX1 was cloned from pineapple‘Tainong 16’，which is a homeobox gene，belongs to the three amino acid loop extension superfamily. The gene’s open reading frame was 990 bp with 329 amino acids. The protein was localized in the nucleus. In addition to the core promoter elements TATA-box and CAAT-box，the AcKNOX1 promoter region contained many elements related to light，hormonal and abiotic stress responses. AcKNOX1 was expressed in different tissues with the highest expression in the stem，followed by leaves，which suggested a certain tissue specificity. AcKNOX1 showed higher expression in spiny leaf materials than in spineless leaf materials. The expression of AcKNOX1 was up-regulated by short-term GA₃，ABA，and 6-BA stress. Ectopic overexpression of AcKNOX1 in Arabidopsis thaliana suggested that transformants showed larger and deeper serrations. Analysis of interaction proteins obtained by Yeast one and two hybrid system showed that AcKNOX1 could interact and activate AcCUC1 and AcCUC2 promoter regions. And AcKNOX1 interacted with AcBLH1 and AcBLH4 to form a heterodimer. And the inteaction was verified by Luciferase complementation imaging assay（LCI）and Bimolecular fluorescence complementation（BIFC）. The results revealed that AcKNOX1 gene played a vital role in the regulation of pineapple leaf margin development.

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• Identification of CsCuAO Gene Family in Cucumber and Their Regulatory Roles in Adventitious Root Formation
• WEN Zhengyang, SUN Jingbo, ZHANG Mengxia, ZHANG Feng, DONG Chunjuan
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 309-321. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2023-0903
• Abstract ( 146 ) HTML ( 71 ) PDF (2770KB) ( 71 ) 　　　

• Seven copper amine oxidase genes（CsCuAO）were identified from the genome of cucumber（Cucumis sativus L.）using bioinformatic techniques. The amino acid lengths of these deduced CsCuAO proteins ranged from 652 to 710 aa，with the isoelectric points（pI）ranging from 5.41 to 8.31. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that CsCuAOs were divided into three subfamily groups，and the genetic structure of the same subfamily had a high similarity. Treatment with putrescine，the CuAO enzymatic substrate，could promote adventitious root formation in cucumber hypocotyls，while application with aminoguanidine，a CuAO specific inhibitor，could inhibit adventitious root formation，with less adventitious root number and shorter adventitious root length. H₂O₂，but not the other CuAO’s catalytic products，could reverse the effect of aminoguanidine on adventitious root formation. The results of qRT-PCR suggested that the expression of CsCuAOβ and CsCuAOζ were dominantly induced at the early stage of adventitious root formation（24 h），while CsCuAOγ1 was significantly induced at the late stage（72-120 h）. Further analysis indicated that the expression of CsCuAOβ and CsCuAOζ was inhibited by IAA，but induced by ACC，the synthesis precursor of ethylene. Both IAA and ACC did not exert a significant influence on the expression of CsCuAOγ1. H₂O₂ could induce the expression of CsCuAOβ，CsCuAOζ and CsCuAOγ1 in different degrees. Transient overexpression of CsCuAOβ，CsCuAOζ and CsCuAOγ1 in cucumber cotyledons could increase the CuAO enzymatic activity and H₂O₂ contents，however，only CsCuAOβ overexpression could promote adventitious root formation at the base of the cotyledon petioles，while CsCuAOγ1 and CsCuAOζ overexpression had no significant effect on adventitious root formation. The results showed that CsCuAOβ gene responds to ethylene signal，and generates H₂O₂ and thereby promotes adventitious root formation in cucumber.

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• Analysis of Endogenous Microbial Community Diversity，Structure and Function of Pepper Different Resistant Phytophthora Blight Cultivars
• CAI Zeyan, ZHANG Mingxing, ZHOU Chi, TAO Yu, YANG Sha, LI Xin, LI Xuefeng
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 322-336. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0620
• Abstract ( 119 ) HTML ( 49 ) PDF (2186KB) ( 49 ) 　　　

• The total DNA of the roots，stems and leaves samples of peppers were extracted from the susceptible pepper cultivars（Fudijian and Qiemen）and resistant pepper cultivars（CM334 and SJ-0948） respectively，and the v3-v4 region of bacterial 16S rRNA gene and the fungal ITS1 region were sequenced using the Illumina platform. The results showed that there were significant differences in the composition of endophytic microorganisms in different pepper cultivars under natural planting. The diversity and richness index of fungal communities in roots，stems and leaves of susceptible cultivars. were significantly lower than those of resistant pepper cultivars. At the phylum level，the dominant bacterial and fungal phyla in the rhizosphere，root and leaves between two types of resistant peppers were the same，but the relative abundance of fungal Ascomycota phylum in the roots，stems and leaves of susceptible pepper（Fudijian）was much higher than that of resistant cultivars at the genus level，the dominant bacterial genera of the resistant pepper（CM334）were Mycobacterium（36.96%）in the root，and 2013Ark19i（15.21%），Photobacterium（5.50%），and Methylobacterium_Methylorubrum（4.11%）in stem，and Aureimonas （3.02%）in the leaves. Moreover，there were more harmful fungal genera in the endogenous parts of susceptible pepper（Fudijian），such as Fusarium accounting for 9.50% and 4.23% in roots and stems，and Cladosporium accounting for 45.46% and 51.74% in stems and leaves，respectively，which were significantly higher than those of two resistant cultivars. Among the fungal genera，only the relative abundance of Neoascochyta（root，leaf）and Mortierella（root）in resistant pepper cultivars was slightly higher than that of the susceptible pepper cultivars. In addition，the analysis of fungal community trophic types through the Funguild database showed that the relative abundance of the fungal communities in pathotroph in the stems and leaves of susceptible pepper（Fudijian）was higher than that of resistant pepper （SJ-0948 and CM334）.

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Genetic & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Molecular Biology

• Sequence Characterization of PRX Family and Expression Analysis in the Process of Fruiting Body Development in Flammulina filiformis
• TONG Zongjun, HAN Xing, DUAN Xinlian, LIU Yuanyuan, LIN Junbin, GAN Ying, CHEN Jie, XIE Baogui, GAN Bingcheng, YAN Junjie
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 337-348. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2023-0929
• Abstract ( 138 ) HTML ( 58 ) PDF (2117KB) ( 58 ) 　　　

• To understand the sequence and expression characteristics of the PRX family genes in Flammulina filiformis，bioinformatics methods were used to screen and identify the PRX gene family sequences from the whole genome of F. filiformis. Subsequently，the members of the gene family were analyzed in terms of gene structure，sequence characterization，chromosomal localization，cis-acting elements，and expression patterns. The results showed that there were six PRX genes distributed on six different chromosomes and localized in different cellular locations. The evolutionary analysis showed that the six genes could be classified into five subfamilies，namely 1CysPRX，2CysPRX，PRXQ，PRXⅡ，and PRXⅤ. The analysis of the cis-acting elements showed that the six genes contained cis-acting elements related to the growth，development，abiotic stresses. Expression pattern analysis showed that members of the gene family had different expression in different developmental periods and tissues of F. filiformis. The expression of FfPRXQ1 and FfPRXⅤ were significantly higher in the pileus of maturation stage than that in other parts，and the expression of Ff1CysPRX，FfPRXⅡ，and FfPRXⅤ were higher in the stable region than the elongation region and transitional region of the stipe. The expression of FfPRXQ2 was significantly higher in the stipe than in the pileus，and the expression at different periods of cap development，showing a first increase and then a decrease. The above results indicated that the PRX family genes were involved in the developmental regulation of the fruiting-body of F. filiformis，and there were obvious differences in the expression patterns.

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Genetic & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Molecular Biology

• Diversity Analysis of Phenotypic Traits for Chinese Herbaceous Peony Cultivar Resources
• QIAN Jingyang, LU Lili, LI Qin, TANG Yuhan, TAO Jun, ZHAO Daqiu
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 349-364. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0277
• Abstract ( 150 ) HTML ( 97 ) PDF (4389KB) ( 97 ) 　　　

• Genetic variation analysis，correlation analysis，cluster analysis and principal component analysis were used to analyze the diversity of 48 phenotypic traits in 167 Chinese herbaceous peony cultivars. The results showed that both qualitative and quantitative traits of Chinese herbaceous peony cultivar resources had high levels of phenotypic diversity，with quantitative traits being more diverse than qualitative traits. Traits such as compound leaf type，flower color，stamen petal shape and color， gynoecium stigma color，scale bud differentiation ability，and flower branch length are important reference indices for measuring the level of phenotypic diversity in herbaceous peony cultivars. R-type cluster analysis classified quantitative traits into 4 categories，mainly reflecting growth potential and leaf traits，floral traits，flowering cycle traits，and phenological period traits. Q-type cluster analysis classified the herbaceous peony cultivar resources into 3 groups，and the number of cultivars in group Ⅰ accounted for 37.13%，which mainly showed late phenological period. The number of cultivars in group Ⅱ accounted for 32.93%，which mainly showed strong growth potential and large flower diameter. The number of cultivars in group Ⅲ accounted for 29.94%，which was mainly characterized by strong scale bud differentiation ability and large number of flowers. All the quantitative traits，except for the single flowering period，differed to varying degrees among the groups of cultivar resources. Principal component analysis allowed the generalization of the traits with the highest contribution to phenotypic variation into phenological period factor，leaf factor，flowering period factor，flower factor，and growth factor.

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Genetic & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Molecular Biology

• Allele-specific Imbalance Analysis and Related Molecular Marker Development in Rosa chinensis‘Old Blush’
• YAN Xu, LI Yue, FU Xiaopeng, NING Guogui, LIANG Mei
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 365-379. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2023-0970
• Abstract ( 116 ) HTML ( 28 ) PDF (3210KB) ( 28 ) 　　　

• In this study，a comprehensive comparative analysis of the two haplotype genomes of Rosa chinensis‘Old Blush’were conducted using RcOB_hap1 and RcOB_hap2. The allele-specific imbalance analysis was conducted by bioinformatics methods，and the corresponding molecular markers were developed，providing a basis for the breeding of the cultivated rose. The results showed that two haplotype genomes had a good collinearity relationship，but the assembly integrity of RcOB_hap2 is better than RcOB_hap1. The heterozygosity of‘Old Blush’rose was 3.48%，containing a large number of single nucleotide polymorphisms，fragment insertions or deletions and chromosomal variations. A total of 1 157 allele-specific protein function genes and 720 allele-specific expression genes were identified in the whole genome. GO annotation and KEGG enrichment analyses of all imbalanced alleles showed that they were mainly involved in the processes of metabolism and synthesis，plant growth and development，and environmental adaptation. Imbalanced alleles AP2，MBY4 and DSC1 were selected for developing molecular markers for floral organ development，aroma synthesis and immune response，respectively. Based on the results of the molecular markers within 183 materials found that the Hap2 AP2 allele had incomplete protein function and was strongly selected in cultivated roses with double flower；For the MBY4，its Hap2 allele showed lower expression and was adopted by most cultivated roses，that might lead cultivated rose emitting less benzenoid volatile；DSC1’s Hap1 allele had lower expression and possible defect protein function，but it was selected in cultivated varieties，that might result in a reduction of the disease resistance in cultivated roses.

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Genetic & Breeding·Germplasm Resources·Molecular Biology

• Genetic Diversity Analysis and SSR Fingerprint Construction of Evergreen Rhododendron Germplasms
• ZHANG Lu, ZHANG Pingping, XIE Weijia, XU Feng, PENG Lüchun, SONG Jie, DU Guanghui, LI Shifeng
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 380-394. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0158
• Abstract ( 106 ) HTML ( 56 ) PDF (2161KB) ( 56 ) 　　　

• In this study，based on genomic sequencing data of Rhododendron delavayi Franch.，genomic-SSR distribution characteristics were analyzed and polymorphic SSR primers were developed. Furthermore，the 61 evergreen Rhododendron germplasms were analyzed for genetic relationship and fingerprint construction to realize their genetic relationships and speculate their possible parents. In the results，15 pairs of SSR primers with high polymorphism，good stability and strong intergeneric versatility were developed，and a total of 126 alleles were detected in 61 evergreen Rhododendron germplasms. The average number of alleles（N_a）and the average effective number of alleles（N_e）were 8.400 and 3.4681，respectively. The mean observed heterozygosity（H_o）and expected heterozygosity（H_e）were 0.3421 and 0.5347，respectively，and the mean polymorphism information content（PIC）was 0.5163. According to the results of population genetic structure analysis，61 evergreen Rhododendron germplasms were divided into 3 subgroups，which were basically consistent with the results of phylogenetic analysis. Combined with the pedigree information，it was inferred that the ancestral parents of the introduced Japanese cultivars came from two different distribution areas，and all cultivars，including the self-bred cultivars，were the hybrids of the parental species from sect. Ponticum in subgen. Hymenanthes. Five SSR markers with high discriminability were used to construct the fingerprint of 61 evergreen Rhododendron germplasms successfully.

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Cultivation·Physiology & Biochemistry

• Effects of Melatonin Treatment on Fruit Quality and Anthocyanin Metabolism of Postharvest‘Taoxingli’Plum
• XU Tong, WANG Yue, WU Lina, ZHANG Hang, YIN Lilai, XU Keyu, ZHENG Xiaolin
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 395-405. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0413
• Abstract ( 161 ) HTML ( 78 ) PDF (2050KB) ( 78 ) 　　　

• This study aimed to explore the effects of exogenous melatonin treatment on the fruit quality and anthocyanin metabolism of‘Taoxingli’plum fruit during storage. The‘Taoxingli’plum fruit about 70% maturity were harvested，and were soaked in water（as the control） or 0.1 mmol · L^-1 melatonin solution for 1 h and then dried in air. The fruit were stored at room temperature（25 ± 1）℃ and relative humidity of 75%-80% for 18 days，and the changes in color，firmness，decay rate，respiration rate，ethylene release，soluble solids content，and anthocyanin metabolism of the fruit were investigated during storage. The results showed that melatonin treatment inhibited the softening and decay of fruit，delayed in the color transformation，reduced respiration rate and ethylene release，postponed the ethylene release peak and the accumulation of carbohydrate in the fruit compared to the control. Melatonin treatment slowed down the anthocyanin accumulation in the fruit by inhibiting the expression of PsCHI gene and the activities of the enzymes involved in anthocyanin synthesis，including cinnamate carboxylase（C4H），4-coumaryl CoA ligase（4-CL），chalcone isomerase（CHI），flavanone hydroxylase（F3H），dihydroflavonol reductase（DFR）and anthocyanin synthetase（ANS） at the beginning time of storage，whereas at the later stage of storage，melatonin treatment significantly up-regulated the expressions of the structural genes including PsCHS，PsF3H，PsDFR，PsANS and PsUFGT related to synthesis of anthocyanins along with increases in the activities of C4H，4-CL，F3H，DFR and ANS，which could promote the synthesis of anthocyanins. Therefore，melatonin treatment not only delayed the process of fruit ripening，but also was of benefit to the accumulation of anthocyanins in the full-ripening fruit，which could be contributed to extending the shelf life and improving the nutritional value of fruit.

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• Effects of Fulvic Acid Potassium on Sugar-Acid Metabolism and Aroma Substances in‘Cabernet Gernischt’Grape Berries
• CHEN Yajuan, JIN Xin, YANG Jiangshan, DAI Zibo, LI Dou, SHAO Zhang
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 406-422. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0019
• Abstract ( 94 ) HTML ( 39 ) PDF (2542KB) ( 39 ) 　　　

• In order to investigate the effects of exogenous fulvic acid potassium（FA-K）on sugar-acid metabolism and aroma substances in wine grape berries. In this experiment，‘Cabernet Gernischt’grapes were used as the experimental material，which were treated with 30，60，90 and 120 mg · L^-1 FA-K solution treatments，with water as control treatment，were applied as foliar sprays at anthesis，fruit set，fruit expansion and color change stages. The effects of FA-K on the content of sugar，acid components and aroma substances as well as the activities of related metabolizing enzymes were determined during the different reproductive periods of grapes. The results showed that FA-K treatment promoted the accumulation of total soluble sugar，glucose，fructose and sucrose content. Especially，the effect of 90 mg · L^-1 FA-K treatment was the most significant. The content of sugar components in the fruit reached the peak at the mature stage，and increased by 25.96%，30.04%，41.48% and 36.17%，respectively compared with the control，while the content of organic acids（malic acid，tartaric acid，oxalic acid and citric acid）in the fruit decreased under different concentrations of FA-K treatment. In addition，FA-K treatment favored the activities of sucrose synthase synthesis direction（SS-ss），sucrose phosphate synthase（SPS），NADP-malic enzyme（NADP-ME），NAD-isocitrate dehydrogenase（NAD-IDH）and mitochondrial aconitase（Mit-ACO），and decreased the activities of sucrose synthase decomposition direction（SS-sc），acid invertase（AI），neutral invertases（NI），phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase（PEPC），NADP-malate dehydrogenase（NAD-MDH），citrate synthase（CS）and cytoplasmic aconitase（Cyt-ACO）. A total of 51 aroma substances were detected in‘Cabernet Gernischt’grape berries using GC-MS，among which n-hexanal，n-hexanol，cyclohexyl formate，2-hexenal and 2-cyclohexen-1-ol were the main aroma components. There were some differences in the aroma substances and contents of fruits with different concentrations of FA-K treatment，among which 90 mg · L^-1 treatment had the most obvious effect on ketones，alcohols，aldehydes，esters and phenolic the aroma components were increased by 1，3，1，1 and 1，and the contents were increased by 650.39%，321.45%，233.93%，127.65% and 125.07%，respectively，in comparison with the control treatment. In conclusion，FA-K treatment can improve the activity of key enzymes of sugar and acid metabolism in wine grape berries to promote the accumulation of sugar and acid components in berries，and has a positive effect on the accumulation of aroma substances in berries，which significantly improved the flavor quality of berries，and the effect of 90 mg · L^-1 FA-K treatment was the most significant.

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• The Effect of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on the Growth and Physiological Characteristics of Walnut Seedlings Under Salt Stress
• LI Ao, ZHENG Xu, WU Chengxu, NIE Ruining, JI Xinying, TANG Jiali, ZHANG Junpei
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 423-438. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0348
• Abstract ( 126 ) HTML ( 75 ) PDF (4057KB) ( 75 ) 　　　

• In order to investigate the effect and regulatory mechanisms of walnut seedlings’ salt tolerance influenced by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi（AMF），in this study，Juglans regia‘Wen 185’ seedings were used as experimental material. Pot experiments were conducted in a greenhouse where seedlings were inoculated with Funneliformis mosseae and Rhizophagus irregularis. The effects of these two AMFs on photosynthetic parameters，chlorophyll fluorescence，stomatal characteristics，antioxidant enzyme activity，and endogenous hormone levels were analyzed under different NaCl concentrations （0，100，200，and 300 mmol · L^-1）. Under NaCl stress，seedling growth and development were inhibited，photosynthetic performance decreased，and the activities of antioxidant enzymes（SOD，POD，APX）and proline（Pro）content increased. Seedlings inoculated with AMF exhibited significant increases in chlorophyll content，photosynthetic parameters，and levels of endogenous hormones（IAA，ABA，GA₃，ZR），but the effects on the fluorescence intensity of the OJIP curve（I-P） and the efficiency of electron transport（ABS/RC，TR_o/RC，ET_o/RC）were not significant. AMF inoculation reduced the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide（H₂O₂）and malondialdehyde（MDA），mitigated oxidative stress，and improved stomatal width at 100 mmol · L^-1 NaCl. At 300 mmol · L^-1 NaCl，inoculation with F. mosseae enhanced antioxidant enzyme activity and Pro content. Principal component analysis showed that AMF mainly improved the salt tolerance of‘Wen 185’walnut seedlings by promoting chlorophyll synthesis，enhancing photosynthetic performance，and increasing POD activity and Pro content，with the inoculation of F. mosseae being more effective.

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• Analysis of the Decomposition of Organic Materials and Nutrients Contents in Root Zone and Leaves of Cucumber Under Organic Substrate Planting Board Cultivation in Solar Greenhouse
• MAO Xin, YUAN Wenfei, GUO Yurun, XU Xinxin, LI Yi, ZHANG Yi, MIAO Yanxiu, BAI Longqiang, LI Yansu
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 439-452. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2023-0728
• Abstract ( 86 ) HTML ( 35 ) PDF (1554KB) ( 35 ) 　　　

• Organic substrate planting board cultivation is suitable for automated organic fertilizer application in solar greenhouse. In order to investigate the effects of organic substrate planting board cultivation on the decomposition characteristics and nutrient releasing patterns of organic materials，and nutrient absorption and growth of crop，‘Zhongnong 46’cucumber（Cucumis sativus L.）was used as the experimental material，and conducted field experiment with organic substrate planting board cultivation and conventional soil cultivation．The results showed that the decomposition rate of organic materials was faster in the first 30 days under organic substrate planting board cultivation and in the first 60 days under conventional soil cultivation，then slowed down until the end of the experiment under both treatments in autumn-winter season in 2021. The decomposition rate of organic substrate planting board cultivation was 3.7 percentage points higher than that of conventional soil cultivation at 30th day，however，7.8 percentage points lower at 120th day. The total N content of organic materials declined rapidly, while total P and K varied little during the experiment. The contents of alkaline N at 0-5 cm layers and the contents of available P and K at 0-5 and 5-15 cm layer under organic substrate planting board cultivation treatment were higher than that of conventional soil cultivation in autumn-winter season in 2021. Besides, the coefficients of variation of nutrients in the root zone of organic substrate planting board cultivation were greater than that of conventional soil cultivation in 2021. In 2023，the variation tendencies of alkaline N contents in the root zone were same as that in 2021，while there was no difference between two treatments in the contents and coefficients of variation of available P. The contents of N，P and K in cucumber leaves of organic substrate planting board cultivation treatment were equal to or greater than that of conventional soil cultivation in 2021，however，K content was 9.6% lower at 120th day in 2023. Meanwhile，the net photosynthetic rate（P_n），dry weights of above ground of organic substrate planting board cultivation treatment were significantly higher than that of conventional soil cultivation in 2021 and 2023. The yields of organic substrate planting board cultivation treatment did not differ from that of conventional soil cultivation in 2021，and was 10.9% higher in 2023. It is concluded that，the organic substrate planting board cultivation can retard the decomposition of organic material，however cucumber absorbed more nutrients due to the superiority of concentrated distribution in the root zone.

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• The Effect of Reducing Soil Temperature with Straw Mulching Cultivation on Potato Growth
• ZHOU Jinhua, BAI Lei, ZHANG Rui, GUO Huachun
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 453-466. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0254
• Abstract ( 79 ) HTML ( 28 ) PDF (1839KB) ( 28 ) 　　　

• The experiment investigated the effects of rice straw mulching on potato growth used the main potato cultivar‘Qingshu 9’as the material. Under the conditions of potato mono-cropping in the spring and summer seasons and potato-corn intercropping，treatments with straw mulching and without straw mulching were established. And the soil temperature，potato tuber yield，quality，canopy temperature，growth stage and aboveground growth conditions were measured. The results showed that in the summer of 2020，the maximum soil temperature under straw mulching treatment（23.81 ℃）was significantly lower than under no straw mulching（30.44 ℃），with the yield and commercial tuber rate also significantly higher than no straw mulching，although there were no significant effects on tuber dry matter and starch content. The results from the potato mono-cropping in the summer seasons of 2021 were similar to 2020，and the straw mulching treatment delayed the number of days from sowing to emergence and from sowing to maturity by 5 and 6 days，respectively，compared with no straw mulching，but no significant difference in the survival time of the aboveground parts and smaller diurnal variations in soil temperature. When potato-corn intercropping，the shading by tall corn did not effectively reduce the canopy air temperature and maximum soil temperature of potatoes，and also resulted in lower yields，commercial tuber rates，and aboveground survival times compared with mono-cropping. The spring and summer mono-cropping trials of 2022 showed similar results to 2021，further indicating that straw mulching treatment did not significantly affect emergence rate，plant morphological characteristics，biomass，dry matter content of various organs，and leaf gas exchange parameters compared with no straw mulching. In summary，straw mulching cultivation is an effective method to mitigate high temperature stress in field-grown potatoes.

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• Differences in Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Community in the Roots and Rhizosphere Soil of Paeonia ludlowii Between Original Site and Introduction Site
• LI Chaonan, LI Lu, GAO Danlei, QIAO Hongyong, YUAN Tao
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 467-480. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0255
• Abstract ( 69 ) HTML ( 23 ) PDF (3469KB) ( 23 ) 　　　

• The roots and rhizosphere soil of Paeonia ludlowii grown in Nyingchi City，Tibet Autonomous Region（the original site），and Luanchuan County，Henan Province（the introduction site），were used as materials. Based on the high-throughput sequencing technology，this study investigated the differences in the community structure and diversity of the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi（AMF）in the roots and rhizosphere soil of P. ludlowii from two locations，taking into account the three critical periods of P. ludlowii growth and development - flowering stage，fruit stage and autumn foliage stage. The results showed that the Observed OTU of the AMF community in the roots of P. ludlowii from the original site were higher than those from the introduction site in all three growth periods. The Observed OTU and Chao1 index of the AMF community in the rhizosphere soil of P. ludlowii from the original site were significantly higher than those from the introduction site during the flowering period. However，during the autumn foliage period，the Observed OTU of the AMF community in the rhizosphere soil from the introduction site were significantly higher than those from the original site. The results of principal component analysis showed that the AMF community in the roots of P. ludlowii differed significantly during the flowering period，and the soil AMF community structure differed significantly in all three growth periods，the LEfSe analysis further illustrated that the AMF species in the roots and rhizosphere soil of P. ludlowii differed significantly between the two sites. Rhizophagus，Glomus and Diversispora were the dominant species in the AMF communities in the roots and rhizosphere soil of P. ludlowii from the two sites，but their relative abundance differed significantly between the two sites. Due to the soil environment of the introduction site，the relative abundance of Rhizophagus and Glomus in the AMF community in the roots of P. ludlowii decreased，while the relative abundance of Diversispora and Claroideoglomus increased. Gigaspora was present only in the original site，while Pacispora was exclusively found in the introduction site. The results of Mantel analysis of the soil physicochemical properties and AMF community showed that total nitrogen content was the main factor affecting the roots AMF community of P. ludlowii in the introduction site. Soil’s available potassium content was significantly correlated with the roots AMF community of P. ludlowii in the original site and the soil AMF community in the introduction site. Soil’s available phosphorus content was significantly correlated with the soil AMF community in the original site.

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Plant Protection

• Diversity and Pathogenicity Differentiation of Botrytis cinerea in Ningxia
• LI Xiaoqing, YAN Siyuan, GU Peiwen
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 481-490. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0210
• Abstract ( 86 ) HTML ( 24 ) PDF (1824KB) ( 24 ) 　　　

• To investigate the population phenotype，genotype diversity，and pathogenicity differences of Botrytis cinerea，the pathogen of grape gray mold in Ningxia，125 strains of B. cinerea were isolated and purified from diseased samples collected from six grape producing areas in Ningxia. By comparing the colony growth rate，spore production，and sclerotial characteristics of various strains，morphological classification was carried out. The population classification was clarified through Bc-hch sequence amplification and enzyme digestion polymorphism analysis. At the same time，Flipper and Boty specific primers were used to identify the transposon genotypes of different strains，and then the pathogenicity of different strains to‘Red Earth’grapes was determined. The results showed that 125 strains can be divided into two categories：hyphal type and fungal nuclear type. Among them，there are 94 hyphal type strains，accounting for 75.2%，including 6 sub phenotypes；There are 31 strains of sclerotic bacteria，accounting for 24.8%，including 5 sub phenotypes. All strains were identified as belonging to Group II through Bc-hch sequence amplification and enzyme digestion polymorphism analysis. The transposon genotypes included Transposa，Boty，and Flipper，with 99 strains of Transposa genotype，accounting for 79%；According to pathogenicity，it is divided into four levels：very strong，strong，moderate，and weak. The highest proportion is very strong，accounting for 37.6%.

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• Identification of Pepper Virus Diseases and Analysis of BWYV Genetic Variation in Dingxi Area of Gansu Province
• YANG Wenqing, WANG Jiahui, XU Bingliang, LI Huixia, LIANG Qiaolan, YANG Shunyi, NIU Erbo
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 491-502. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0282
• Abstract ( 95 ) HTML ( 21 ) PDF (2899KB) ( 21 ) 　　　

• Using a method that combines high-throughput sequencing technology with RT-PCR，pathogen identification was conducted on pepper leaves infected with viral diseases in the Dingxi area of Gansu Province. The results indicated that the infected leaves were co-infected with cucumber mosaic virus and sugar beet western yellow virus. Notably，this study marks the first identification of BWYV infecting peppers in Gansu. Specific primers were employed to clone the coat protein and movement protein genes of BWYV，facilitating an in-depth analysis of the molecular evolution and genetic variation of this virus. Sequence comparisons revealed that the nucleotide and amino acid similarities between the coat protein（CP）gene of BWYV and isolates from other species ranged from 93.27% to 99.51% and from 90.10% to 99.01%，respectively. The similarities of the movement protein（MP） genes were found to be between 89.20% and 99.05% for nucleotides and between 86.86% and 98.86% for amino acids. Furthermore，phylogenetic analysis of BWYV demonstrated that different isolates could be categorized into four distinct groups. These groups exhibited no discernible geographical distribution characteristics，while host plant diversity analysis revealed significant correlations with host species.

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New technologies and methods

• Detection and Identification of Virus Infecting Phalaenopsis Based on Small RNA Deep Sequencing Technology and Multiple RT-PCR Identification
• FAN Ronghui, WU Jianshe, FENG Zinan, ZHONG Shengyuan, ZHONG Huaiqin
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 503-512. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0192
• Abstract ( 81 ) HTML ( 23 ) PDF (1844KB) ( 23 ) 　　　

• This study collected 56 suspected virus samples of Phalaenopsis from Fuzhou，Xiamen，Zhangzhou，and Quanzhou in Fujian Province，which were divided into three types of mixed samplesbased on infection symptoms：chlorosis，yellowing brown spots，and yellowing wrinkles. Small RNA sequencing technology and RT-PCR were used for detection，and a total of 8 viruses were found. According to the detection rate，they were Cymbidium mosaic virus（CyMV）（85.71%），Odontoglossum ringspot virus （ORSV）（35.71%），white clover mosaic virus（WCMV）（32.14%），yam virus X（YaVX）（21.43%），Narcissus mosaic virus（NaMV）（10.71%），pepino mosaic virus（PeMV）（8.93%），potato virus X（PoVX）（7.14%），and Schlumbergera virus X（ScVX）（7.14%）from high to low. Among them， detection rates of CyMV，ORSV and WCMV are over 30%，and most of them are compound infections，accounting for 75.51% of the total infections. Using small RNA sequencing sequences as templates，specific primers were designed and a multiplex RT-PCR system was established for simultaneous detection of five viruses. The primer concentrations for ORSV，CyMV，WCMV，YaVX，and PoVX were 0.30，0.06，0.20，0.50 and 0.40 μmol · L^-1，respectively. At an annealing temperature of 56 ℃，target bands with fragment sizes of 1 156，908，561，292 and 162 bp，respectively，can be simultaneously amplified with good specificity. The sensitivity test results show that these 5 viruses can be detected from infected plant tissues equivalent to or greater than 0.0001 mg.

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Reviews

• Advances in the Relationship Between Cell Wall Metabolism and Physiological Diseases of Citrus Peel
• ZHANG Shuning, ZHENG Shuqi, WANG Xinsheng, KE Fuzhi, ZHANG Lanlan, SUN Xuepeng, GONG Jinli
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 513-525. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0252
• Abstract ( 116 ) HTML ( 53 ) PDF (2082KB) ( 53 ) 　　　

• In this article，the characteristics of changes in the polysaccharide metabolism，morphological structure and peel properties of cell walls were introduced when physiological diseases such as fruit wrinkling，fruit cracking and fruit puffing occur in citrus fruits，as well as the research progress on the relationship between the microscopic structure of cell walls of peel cells，cell wall metabolism，related gene expression and physiological diseases of the peel. The aim is to provide a direction for the research and development of prevention and control technologies for physiological diseases of citrus peels and to provide a theoretical basis for the subsequent in-depth study of the molecular mechanisms of cell wall metabolism.

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• The Research Progress of Hydrogen-based Biological Effects in Horticultural Crops
• JIN Zhiwei, WANG Yueqiao, LI Longna, SHEN Wenbiao
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 526-540. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0297
• Abstract ( 82 ) HTML ( 31 ) PDF (1942KB) ( 31 ) 　　　

• Molecular hydrogen（H₂），as a potential gaseous signaling molecule，plays important roles in regulating plant growth and development，stresses response，and postharvest senescence，etc. Recently，the research of hydrogen biological function is gradually focusing on horticultural crops with high economic values from medicine. In the context of“Double Reduction Policy”，hydrogen-based agriculture with green ecological concepts is becoming a potential important way to develop the healthy horticultural industry. To better understand the function and related mechanisms of H₂ acting as a“plant growth regulator”，and elucidate its application prospects in horticulture，current research progresses linked to corresponding practice and theory were reviewed. Prospects of H₂ application in horticulture were elucidated，and remaining problems as well as future research directions in horticultural crops were also proposed.

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New Cultivars

• A New High-Quality Non-Heading Chinese Cabbage Cultivar‘Yongqing 8’
• REN Xiliang, WANG Yuhong, GAO Tianyi, WANG Jie, HUANG Yunping
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 541-542. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0174
• Abstract ( 111 ) HTML ( 50 ) PDF (1496KB) ( 50 ) 　　　

• ‘Yongqing 8’is a new cultivar of non-heading Chinese cabbage. The plant has strong growth momentum，a relatively upright plant shape，a height of 21.8 centimeters，and a width of 41.5 cm × 36.1 cm，with about 18 leaves，wide elliptical，entire，green in color，glossy. The petiole is light green，with a crescent shaped cross-section. A single plant weighs 365.9 g，with good waistband and beautiful plant shape. The protein content of‘Yongqing 8’is about 0.8%，crude fiber is 0.3%，vitamin C is 130 mg · kg^-1，and soluble solids are 1.6%. It has good marketability and a good taste. ‘Yongqing 8’is resistant to downy mildew and soft rot. Its yield is about 4 500 kg · hm^-2. It is suitable for planting in autumn and winter in the Yangtze River Basin.

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• A New Dwarf and Fine Leaved Cultivar of Agapanthus praecox ‘Xingxingzhihuo’
• WANG Chengzhong, LI Qingkui, ZHU Wei, LI Chenghui, YIN Yuansen, Zhang Yan
• Acta Horticulturae Sinica. 2025, 52(2): 543-544. DOI:10.16420/j.issn.0513-353x.2024-0398
• Abstract ( 88 ) HTML ( 36 ) PDF (935KB) ( 36 ) 　　　

• Most of the plants in Agapanthus have medicinal and ornamental value，inland breeding is critical for promoting the utilization of this genus and the growth of China’s application and extension.‘Xingxingzhihuo’is a new cultivar bred from the seedlings of Agapanthus praecox. Compared to the original species，the average height of the leaf clump was reduced by 59.5%，the average crown diameter was reduced by 58.67%，and the average leaf width was reduced by 77.78%. The scape is thin and weak；the diameter of the umbel is 9-10 cm，with 30-40 small flowers；the small white flowers are funnel-shaped；Stamens are numerous，slightly protruding perianth segments，Stigma equal to anther height，odorless. The flowering period is in mid-June. The most suitable time for planting in protected cultivation is in the fall.

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