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Tetrastigma hemsleyanum is a traditional Chinese medicine herb, commonly used for its anti-inflammatory and antitumor properties. Flavonoids are the main functional constituents of T. hemsleyanum, and their production in the herb is affected by light quality. T. hemsleyanum is a shade-loving plant and is usually covered by black shade nets during cultivation. However, there are only a few studies on the effects of using color films on growth and flavonoid synthesis in T. hemsleyanum. In this study, we measured the influence of five different color films on growth indexes—sugar, soluble amino acid, soluble protein, and flavonoid content—and flavonoid-synthesizing enzyme activities in T. hemsleyanum. The films used were colorless plastic film as the control group (CK-W), red film (RF), yellow film (YF), green film (GF), and blue film (BF). BF promoted plant growth and increased yield, as evidenced by the highest growth indexes, soluble amino acid content, and chalcone isomerase (CHI) enzyme activity. RF increased the content of secondary metabolites, thereby enhancing herb quality, as evidenced by the highest phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) activity and increased flavonoid content.
Pedicularis rex C. B. Clarke ex Maxim., an endemic species with potential horticultural traits from Himalaya, has a unique cup-like petiole structure and highly infraspecific floral variation among members of the lousewort genus (Orobanchaceae). We developed 13 microsatellite markers from three microsatellite-enriched libraries (AG, AC, and AAG) of P. rex with a modified biotin–streptavidin capture technique. Polymorphism of each locus was assessed in 22 individuals with representation of five populations of P. rex. Number of alleles per locus (A) ranged from two to seven with an average of 4.38. The observed and expected heterozygosities varied from 0.03 to 0.86 and 0.45 to 0.84, respectively. Additionally, among the 13 identified microsatellite markers, 11 of them were successfully amplified in species P. thamnophila, and five of them showed polymorphisms. This study may provide important information for further investigation on the population genetics, introduction, and acclimatization of P. rex and its congeners.