Habitat changes due to cultivation alter the genetic diversity and secondary metabolic changes of medicinal plants

Differences in habitats of medicinal plants can directly influence their quality and effectiveness. For the sustainable development of cultivated medicinal plants, the changes in genetic structure and secondary metabolism caused by habitat changes is an issue that can not be ignored. The wild and cultivated populations of Polygonatum odoratum, Dioscorea nipponica, and Acanthopanax sessiliflorus were selected as the research objects. And the genetic structure and HPLC fingerprint between wild and cultivated populations were compared and analyzed. The wild and cultivated populations of the three medicinal plants still maintained higher genetic diversity and genetic stability, and there was a great genetic differentiation for P. odoratum and D. nipponica populations. Furthermore, Spearman analysis shows that environmental factors significantly influence the secondary metabolism of medicinal plants, Moreover, the wild populations of these plants exhibit a greater complexity in their secondary metabolites when habitat changed. Taken together, Significant differences were generated in the content and composition of secondary metabolites between cultivated and wild populations of the same species, despite their maintaining genetic stability and higher genetic diversity. It also indicated that no obvious consistency oscillation caused by habitat changes was found in the genetic structure and secondary metabolism of medicinal plants.