Characteristics of non-volatile metabolites in fresh shoots from tea plant (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) and its closely related species and varieties

Abstract

Tea plant (<i>Camellia sinensis</i>) and its closely related species and varieties belong to Sect. <i>Thea</i> (L.) Dyer, <i>Camellia</i> L. There are abundant compounds in the fresh shoots of section <i>Thea</i> (L.) Dyer species and varieties. Their variation in different tea species and varieties is unclear. Accordingly, fresh shoots from 336 accessions of <i>C. sinensis</i> and its closely related species and varieties were harvested and their non-volatile metabolites were detected through UPLC-MS (ultra-performance liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry). A total of 374 non-volatile metabolites were identified, which can be divided into 27 categories. Among them, 32 compounds were flavonoid polymers. The tea plants were divided into two groups, according to the Calinski criterion according to the composition of metabolites. The top 30 differential metabolites in <i>C. sinensis</i> var. <i>sinensis</i>, <i>C. sinensis</i> var. <i>assamica</i>, <i>C. sinensis</i> var. <i>pubilimba</i>, <i>C. tachangensis</i>, and <i>C. taliensis</i>, belong to amino acids and their derivatives, benzoic acid derivatives, carbohydrates, coumarins, flavonol glycosides, organic acids, quinoline acid and its derivatives. The result provides now insights for further understanding the characteristic metabolites of tea plant and its closely related species and varieties.