Coptis Chinensis, commonly known as Huanglian, is a major traditional Chinese medicinal herb and is listed as one of the "Top Ten Chu Medicines" in Hubei Province. It is known for its effectiveness in clearing heat, drying dampness, purging fire, and detoxifying the body. In recent years, the cultivation scale of Coptis Chinensis has been continuously expanding. However, in some regions, the long-term monoculture and single cultivation methods have led to the frequent occurrence of diseases such as root rot, resulting in large-scale reduction and even complete crop failure of Coptis Chinensis.
Title: Huanglian: Insights from Interviews and Research Findings
On the one hand, the traditional method of planting Huanglian involves setting up sheds, which is costly and not conducive to ecological balance. To address this, under the sponsorship of projects such as the Key Laboratory of Medicinal Biology and Cultivation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and the Institute of Medicinal Materials of Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the planting team has long been engaged in research on the Huanglian understory cultivation model and green pest control in Hubei Province, as part of the "515" action plan for the technology service of the medicinal materials industry and projects funded by central and local governments. The aim is to tackle the bottlenecks in the Huanglian industry.
Recently, the team's latest research findings on ecological cultivation of Huanglian have been published successively in international academic journals such as "Journal of Agricultural Chemistry and Biotechnology," "Frontiers in Microbiology," and "Genes."
The research found that agroforestry cultivation effectively resolves the conflict between medicinal plant cultivation and farmland, significantly enhances biodiversity, promotes ecological balance, and improves crop quality. In recent years, the model of Huanglian cultivation under Chinese fir forests has been widely used in the southwestern region of China. However, whether this model is conducive to the growth of Huanglian and whether it can increase the yield and content of its main active ingredient (berberine alkaloids) remain unclear. Using transcriptome and metabolome technologies, team members analyzed and discovered that the Chinese fir/Huanglian understory planting model not only significantly increases the yield of Huanglian but also alters the content of berberine alkaloids. Subsequently, the researchers analyzed its potential mechanisms of action, providing technical support for the application of Huanglian ecological planting technology.
White rust disease is a major disease of Huanglian and is currently showing an outbreak trend in multiple production areas, becoming one of the main factors limiting the Huanglian industry. To efficiently and safely prevent and control Huanglian white rust disease, the team developed new strategies for the effective prevention and control of medicinal white rust disease. Team members isolated and identified a highly effective antagonistic bacterium, Bacillus velezensis LT1, from the rhizosphere soil of Huanglian. It produces a variety of lipopeptide antibiotics that inhibit the mycelial growth and spore germination of the pathogenic fungus of Huanglian white rust disease, Puccinia striiformis f. sp. Tritici, significantly reducing the incidence of white rust disease. At the same time, the team conducted transcriptome analysis of the three growth stages of the white rust disease fungus (mycelial stage, early stage of spore formation, and late stage of spore formation), screening out key signaling pathways and key genes during spore formation, providing theoretical basis for screening new targets related to the regulation of key genes in spore formation in the future. The research results provide new strategies and ideas for the biological control of Huanglian white rust disease.
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