Abstract
The formation of Wuyi rock tea’s “rock flavor” exhibits distinct zonal characteristics, potentially closely related to differences in its rhizosphere microbial communities. This study systematically analyzed rhizosphere soil and leaf samples from tea plants in authentic rocky zone (ZY), semi-rock zone (BY), and continent zone (ZC) zones to uncover the microbiological mechanisms influencing tea quality. Results revealed significant gradient differences in tea quality indices (catechin, theanine, and caffeine content) following ZY > BY > ZC. Soil physicochemical analysis revealed that ZY exhibited the highest contents of available nitrogen and phosphorus, while ZC demonstrated superior organic matter content. Microbial community analysis indicated that ZY possessed the highest microbial functional diversity but the lowest network complexity, with community construction dominated by random processes. Through machine deep learning, the study identified Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena as two key characteristic microbial genera, whose abundance showed significant positive correlations with tea quality indices. Functional prediction analysis further indicated that these two genera were significantly enriched in specialized pathways such as photosynthesis and lichenization. Moreover, the abundance of these characteristic microorganisms showed significant positive correlations with their corresponding functional intensities, soil physicochemical indices, and tea quality indices. This study elucidated the soil microbial ecological basis for the formation of Wuyi rock tea quality across different rock zones from the perspectives of microbial community construction mechanisms and functional property. It provides theoretical support for understanding tea plant–soil-microorganism interactions and precision management in tea plantations.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Tea quality indices followed ZY > BY > ZC.
Verbatim
e0“Results revealed significant gradient differences in tea quality indices (catechin, theanine, and caffeine content) following ZY > BY > ZC.”
t0“tea plant”
Claim · model-written summary
ZY had the highest available nitrogen and phosphorus contents.
Not reportedTaxon
Verbatim
e0“ZY exhibited the highest contents of available nitrogen and phosphorus”
Claim · model-written summary
ZC had superior organic matter content.
Not reportedTaxon
Verbatim
e0“ZC demonstrated superior organic matter content”
Claim · model-written summary
ZY had the highest microbial functional diversity.
Verbatim
e0“ZY possessed the highest microbial functional diversity but the lowest network complexity”
Claim · model-written summary
ZY had the lowest microbial network complexity.
Verbatim
e0“ZY possessed the highest microbial functional diversity but the lowest network complexity”
Claim · model-written summary
Random processes dominated ZY microbial community construction.
Verbatim
e0“community construction dominated by random processes”
t0“tea plant”
Claim · model-written summary
Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena were identified as characteristic microbial genera.
- Taxon
- Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena
PsoroglaenaObscuribacteraceae (SeqCode)e0 - Outcome
- key characteristic microbial generae0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“identified Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena as two key characteristic microbial genera”
Claim · model-written summary
The abundance of Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena correlated positively with tea quality indices.
- Taxon
- tea plantt0
- Interactor
- Obscuribacteraceae and PsoroglaenaPsoroglaenaObscuribacteraceae (SeqCode)e0symbiont
- Outcome
- tea quality indicese0
- Direction
- positivee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“identified Obscuribacteraceae and Psoroglaena as two key characteristic microbial genera, whose abundance showed significant positive correlations with tea quality indices”
t0“tea plant”
Claim · model-written summary
Both characteristic genera were enriched in photosynthesis and lichenization pathways.
Verbatim
e0“these two genera were significantly enriched in specialized pathways such as photosynthesis and lichenization”
Claim · model-written summary
Characteristic microorganism abundance correlated positively with functional intensities, soil indices, and tea quality indices.
Verbatim
e0“the abundance of these characteristic microorganisms showed significant positive correlations with their corresponding functional intensities, soil physicochemical indices, and tea quality indices”
t0“tea plant”