Tingchang Liu¹, Shiming Han^1*, Yuexia Wang^1,2, Yumei Fang¹, Lina Guo¹, Yuxin Wang¹, Jihong Dong²

¹School of Biological Science and Technology, Liupanshui Normal University，Guizhou, Liupanshui, China

²School of Public Administration, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China

 

*Corresponding author’s email: hanshiliang888@163.com

Received: 20 November 2025 / Revised: 09 February 2026 / Accepted: 17 February 2026 / Published Online: 09 March 2026

 

Abstract

 

China has rich genetic resources of kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis), the flowering time of kiwifruit is crucial for the yield, quality, and economic benefits, and the mechanisms underlying the earlier flowering time of kiwifruit need to explore. It is unclear for the mechanism of flowering time of kiwifruit to now. A new kiwifruit variety Minihong 1 (M) was approved in 2025, with a flowering time is about ten days earlier than the other two varieties Hanhong (H) and Guichang (G). We selected the folded, unfolded, mature leaves, alabastrum and full-flowering stages of the above three varieties for RNA-seq, and conducted Venn diagram analysis of the high-expression genes (FPKM value > 100) in the alabastrum of these three varieties, and found that 381 genes specifically highly expressed in the early-flowering variety M. Further analysis, it includes 42 genes related to photosynthesis, and most of these genes particularly high expressing in M from the vegetative growth period to the early reproductive growth stage (alabastrum stage). We speculate that the high expression of photosynthetic genes in M leads to increase accumulation of photosynthetic products, which promotes its flowering earlier. This study proposes possible factors that determine the flowering period of kiwifruit, laying a theoretical foundation for the regulation of kiwifruit flowering in the future.

 

Keywords: Kiwifruit, Actinidia chinensis, Photosynthesis, Flowering time

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