Gene Modification of Medicinal Plant Germplasm Resources

Abstract

Germplasm resources refer to the basic materials for selecting and cultivating new species, which include propagating materials of cultivated species and wild species from different plants and artificially creating genetic materials of various plants based on the propagating materials. Chinese herbal medicine covers about 11,146 species, possessing rich medicinal plant germplasm resources. Medicinal plant germplasm resources are mainly composed of all of the medicinal genetic resources from medicinal plants, including the seeds, the roots, stems, embryos, cells, protoplasts, etc., and are a cornerstone for introducing the cultivation and sustainable use of resources as well as the bases for ensuring the quality of medicine. Hence, collection and evaluation of medicinal plant germplasm resources plays a vital role in studying and utilising medicinal materials and bioactive metabolites. The investigation of medicinal plant germplasm resources mainly includes photographs and records of their morphological characteristics, biology, medicinal organs, medicinal values, other economic values, etc. The purpose preserving germplasm resources is for the sustainable use of genetic resources. The stored germplasm resources should maintain the original viability, degrees of genetic variation, and amounts of samples. The evaluation of germplasm resources includes the species identification of germplasm, genetic diversity analysis, and the determination of genetic relationships. The genetic manipulation of medicinal plant germplasm resources that includes conventional selective breeding, cross-breeding, and plant genetic engineering is a process in which the genome of a medicinal plant species is modified in order to produce desired traits. Through genetic modification, functional genes in medicinal plant germplasm resources are reformed to ensure the efficacy and quality of traditional medicines and their products. This chapter introduces the medicinal plant germplasm resources, investigation methods and gene modification techniques of germplasm resources, and reviews gene modification applications in medicinal plant germplasm resources.