Abstract: Dendrobium officinale,alternatively named as “Heijiecao” in China,belongs to genus Dendrobium of Orchidaceae in the Angiosperm,Monocotyledonous. It is a perennial herb with combined edible,medicinal and ornamental properties and great economic value. The wild resource of D. officinale has been near extinct due to low germination efficiency of seeds under the natural conditions,habitat destruction and excessive picking. In 1991,it was listed as endangered plants by the state. The "Chinese Pharmacopoeia" records that it has the effect of relieving stomach upsets,promoting body fluid production,nourishing “yin” and enhancing antipyresis,thus called as “pharmaceutical panda” and possesses high medicinal value. Moreover,because the comprehensive health industry has developed vigorously in recent years and the market demand of D. officinale has increased year by year,this ancient dual-use plant as food and medicine has become a hotspot. With the maturing of genome sequencing and bioinformatics,a series of gratifying achievements in molecular biology for D. officinale has been achieved. This paper reviews the recent advances in molecular genetics,genome,transcriptome,proteome and metabolome on D. officinale at home and abroad,and discusses the significance of these works,and also prospects the work that needs to be carried out,aiming to provide the theoretical basis for molecular breeding,functional gene mining and biosynthesis mechanism of active components,and to promote the scientific and sustainable development of D. officinale industry.

Key words: Dendrobium officinale, molecular genetics, genome, transcriptome