To understand tea germplasms better and to use them effectively for production and breeding, the catechin content of 403 accessions of representative tea germplasms collected from various locations in China were studied using HPLC. The catechin content of these tea germplasms varied from 56.6 to 231.9 mg/g and averaged 154.5 ± 18.1 mg/g. One germplasm with low total catechin (TC) content (<60 mg/g) and three with high TC (>200 mg/g) contents were found. Averages of the TC content of the three varieties of Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze, namely, sinensis, assamica, and pubilimba, were 152.9 ± 16.2 mg/g, 162.8 ± 22.3 mg/g, and 165.1 ± 21.3 mg/g, respectively. The TC content of the sinensis variety was significantly lower (P < 0.05) than that of the other two varieties. The assamica variety had the highest levels of (-)-epicatechin gallate (ECG), and (-)-epicatechin (EC), whereas the pubilimba variety had the highest levels of (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), (+)-gallocatechin (GC), (+)-catechin (C), and (-)-gallocatechin gallate (GCG). Factor analysis indicated that GC, C, GCG, catechin index, and ECG greatly influenced the classification. The TC content of germplasms collected from the various provinces showed significant differences (P < 0.05). Tea germplasms of the southern provinces had higher degrees of variation in TC.
Keywords: China; catechins; tea plant; variation.