[Prospects for research on preparation and application of protoplasts from medicinal plants]

As naked single cells with cell walls removed, protoplasts from medicinal plants serve as an ideal experimental system for overcoming barriers to distant hybridization in plants and achieving precise germplasm innovation, providing a new pathway for germplasm improvement. This paper systematically reviews the technical system for the isolation, purification, culture, and regeneration of medicinal plant protoplasts, and provides an in-depth comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of different technical approaches as well as their applicable scenarios. In response to practical cultivation bottlenecks currently faced by the TCM industry, such as degradation of wild germplasm resources, continuous cropping obstacles, and low levels of effective secondary metabolites, this paper focuses on the necessity of introducing protoplast technology into medicinal plant breeding and its cutting-edge applications in genetic engineering. Through somatic hybridization and DNA-free genome editing, protoplast technology overcomes the limitations of conventional sexual reproduction, enabling the directed recombination of superior parental traits and the efficient synthesis of targeted active constituents. This approach not only provides new technical means for improving the quality and yield of medicinal materials, but also opens up new avenues for addressing the depletion of TCM resources, holding important theoretical significance and practical industrial value.