Abstract:In order to understand the characteristics of cellulase in shoots of Camellia sinensis, the changes in cellulase activity and related gene expressions in three cultivars of C. sinensis were studied. The results showed that the cellulase activity in the three cultivars had significant difference. The activities of the endo-glucanase and exo-glucanase in ‘Pingyang Tezao’ and ‘Fuzao No. 2’ increased with leaf maturity, which was contrary to the ‘Shuchazao’. The β-glucosidase activity in the three cultivars was the lowest at stage of three leaves with a bud, and its activity in young parts was higher than that in maturity parts in shoots. Otherwise, the activity of β-glucosidase in tea shoots was higher than that of exo-glucanase. The expresions of five cellulase-related genes could be detected in shoots of three cultivars by semi-quantitative PCR, in which the expression of two homologous genes had significant difference. Therefore, the glucanase would play a role in quality formation of tea.