生漆是一种重要的天然涂料, 具有耐热、耐腐蚀和抗酸等优良特性, 已广泛应用于各领域。揭示漆树(Toxicodendron vernicifluum)生长过程中生漆代谢物的变化规律是充分挖掘其应用潜力的关键。利用广泛靶向代谢组学技术, 通过主成分分析、正交偏最小二乘法判别分析和聚类热图分析等方法, 对不同发育阶段(基于割漆时间)漆树的韧皮部汁液进行分析, 探讨不同时期漆树生漆中代谢物的差异和变化规律。结果显示, 在不同时期生漆中共鉴定出529种代谢物, 包括黄酮类、酚酸类、生物碱、鞣质、糖和醇类及脂质等13类。多元统计分析表明, 第II、III、IV和V期生漆的代谢特征相似, 且与第I期存在较大差异。对不同发育时期生漆代谢物进行比较分析, 鉴定出92种共同差异代谢物, 其中黄酮类化合物主要积累于第I期生漆中, 而氨基酸及其衍生物、糖和醇类在后期生漆中含量较高。研究结果为全面了解不同时期漆树生漆的代谢特征提供了依据, 对漆树资源的开发利用具有重要意义。

Raw lacquer is a valuable natural coating material with exceptional properties, including heat, corrosion, and acid resistance, which make it an important resource in various industries. Revealing the changes in metabolites during its growth process of lacquer is the key to excavate its applications. We analyzed phloem sap samples of Toxicodendron vernicifluum at different developmental stages (based on the time of lacquer harvesting) using broad targeted metabolomic analysis technology, including principal component analysis, orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis, and cluster heat map analysis, to investigate the differences and changing patterns of metabolites. Our analysis identified 529 metabolites in raw lacquer, which can be classified into 13 major groups, including flavonoids, phenolic acids, alkaloids, tannins, sugars and alcohols, and lipids. Multivariate statistical analysis revealed that the metabolic characteristics of raw lacquer in the second, third, fourth, and fifth developmental stages were similar, but significantly different from those in the first stage. By comparing and analyzing the metabolites in raw lacquer at different developmental stages, we identified 92 common differentially abundant metabolites. Notably, flavonoid compounds primarily accumulated in raw lacquer during the first stage, while amino acids and their derivatives, sugars, and alcohols had relatively higher contents in raw lacquer at later stages. Our findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the metabolic characteristics of raw lacquer at different developmental stages, which could have significant implications for the development and utilization of lacquer resources.