药用植物是中药的原材料,药用植物的遗传育种工作对提高中药材的产量和质量起着十分关键的作用,是重要的应用基础研究领域。药用植物的遗传和品种改良在国内外均已引起了有关方面的重视。本文对目前药用植物遗传育种的现状和国内外已经取得的工作成果分4个方面进行了总结,尤其对应用生物新技术进行药用植物育种的成果和今后的研究前景提出了展望和建议。

Medicinal plants are basic ma terials of traditional Chinese medicine,which have direct relationship with t h e quality and curative effects of medicines.Therefore,their genetic breeding p lays a very important role in the improvem ent of the quality and yield of Chine se medicin al plants and is also a major area of ap plied basic research in this field.T he research of genetics and variety improvement of medicinal plants h as drawn great a ttention at home and abroad.This pap er gives a general review of the research progress and results in genetic breeding of medicinal plants in four aspects i n China and in the world,and in particular,prop oses some sugg estions on the genetic breeding of medicinal plants by the a pplication of new b iotechnologies and looks forward to its prospects.