The Molecular Mechanisms of Cold Tolerance in Brassica napus

Brassica napus is a crucial oilseed crop in China, meeting approximately 55% of the country’s demand for vegetable oils. However, throughout its growth cycle, it frequently encounters low-temperature stress. As a key environmental factor constraining the stability of Brassica napus L. yield and quality, cold damage makes research into the cold tolerance mechanisms of Brassica napus L. highly significant for the breeding of cold-tolerant varieties. This paper focuses on the issue of low-temperature stress in Brassica napus L., synthesizing recent relevant research findings. It first clarifies the phenotypic effects of low-temperature stress on Brassica napus L. at different growth stages. Concurrently, low temperatures disrupt the integrity of the Brassica napus cell membrane and inhibit photosynthesis, in response, plants can mitigate oxidative damage by activating antioxidant enzyme systems, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). Based on the above, the current research progress in mining cold-tolerant germplasm resources in China and identifying cold tolerance genes in Brassica napus L. is further summarized as follows. This paper provides a theoretical reference for an in-depth analysis of the cold tolerance mechanisms in Brassica napus L. and for accelerating the breeding of cold-tolerant varieties. Future efforts should focus on the functional validation of key genes within cold tolerance pathways and the application of multi-gene pyramiding breeding technologies to break through the bottleneck in controlling cold damage in Brassica napus L.