Recently, the research team of Li Fuguang, a professor at the College of Agriculture, ZZU, has made positive progress in the genetic mechanism of cotton indirect defense against pests. It was found that the nectary-free traits in Asian cotton have been strongly selecｔed during the process of transmission and evolution in China, revealing the key regulatory genes for nectaries development. This work has set up a molecular regulatory network for nectary growth and development, laying a foundation for studying “plant-animal interaction” and breeding via nectary traits. Relevant research results were published online in the internationally renowned journal Plant Biotechnology Journal under the title of “Genetic and evolution analysis of extrafloral nectary in cotton”. This study constructed a regulation network for nectary growth and development, and concluded that the phenylpropane metabolic pathway may play an important role in the indirect defense process of cotton, which is of great significance to insect-resistant breeding of cotton.