Taking advantage of spaceflights for breeding of medicinal plants

The cultivation of medicinal plants for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) faces significant challenges, including germplasm degradation and limitations in conventional breeding strategies, leading to a growing supply gap for high-quality TCM materials. Space breeding, leveraging the unique mutagenic conditions of the space environment, offers a powerful platform for germplasm innovation of medicinal plants. This review highlights the key advantages and current challenges of space breeding for medicinal plant improvement within the TCM industry. Recommendations for its future development have also been provided. While challenges such as unclear mutation mechanisms and high costs remain, advancing foundational research, establishing standardized protocols, and fostering industry-academia collaboration are essential to realizing its full potential. Ultimately, space breeding promises to be a core driver for the sustainable supply and high-quality development of the TCM industry, and pave the way for integrating TCM-based health support systems into future long-term manned space missions.