Light Intensity Modulates the Effect of Phosphate Limitation on Carbohydrates, Amino Acids, and Catechins in Tea Plants (Camellia sinensis L.)

Metabolites are major contributors to the quality of tea that are regulated by various abiotic stresses. Light intensity and phosphorus (P) supply affect the metabolism of tea plants. However, how these two factors interact and mediate the metabolite levels in tea plants are not fully understood. The present study investigated the consequences of different light intensity and P regimes on the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and flavonoids in the Fengqing tea cultivar. The leaves and young shoots were subjected to untargeted metabolomics analysis by two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC–TOF/MS), ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-TOF/MS (UPLC–Q–TOF/MS), and targeted analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) along with quantification of gene expression by quantitative real time-PCR (qRT–PCR). The results from young shoots showed that amino acids, pentose phosphate, and flavonol glycosides pathways were enhanced in response to decreasing light intensities and P deficiency. The expression of the genes hexokinase 1, ribose 5-phosphate isomerase A (RPIA), glutamate synthetase 1 (GS1), prolyl 4-hydroxylase (P4H), and arginase was induced by P limitation, thereafter affecting carbohydrates and amino acids metabolism, where shading modulated the responses of transcripts and corresponding metabolites caused by P deficiency. P deprivation repressed the expression of Pi transport, stress, sensing, and signaling (SPX2) and induced bidirectional sugar transporter (SWEET3) and amino acid permeases (AAP) which ultimately caused an increase in the amino acids: glutamate (Glu), proline (Pro), and arginine (Arg) under shading but decreased catechins [epicatechingallate (ECG) and Gallic acid, GA] content in young shoots.