Shifts in stomatal traits following the domestication of plant species

Stomata are the major gates regulating substrate availability for photosynthesis and water loss. Although both processes are critical to yield and to resource-use efficiency, we lack a comprehensive picture on how domestication and further breeding have impacted on leaf stomata. To fill this gap, stomatal sizes and densities were screened in cultivated and wild ancestor representatives of a uniquely large group of 24 herbaceous crops. Anatomical data and gas-exchange models were combined to compute maximum potential conductance to water, separately for upper and lower leaf sides. The evolution of maximum conductance under domestication was diverse. Several crops increased, others decreased (noticeably high-conductance species), and others kept a similar potential conductance following domestication. It was found that the contribution of upper leaf sides to maximum conductance was statistically higher in cultivated than in wild ancestors. For crops showing this response, reduced stomatal density in the lower side of domesticated leaves was responsible for the observed 'adaxialization' of conductance. Increases in the size of stomata at the upper epidermis played a comparatively minor role. Nevertheless, this overall response was varied in magnitude and direction, signalling crop-wise specificities. Observed patterns reflect only potential conductances based on anatomical traits and should be used with care until actual physiological outcomes are measured. Together with advancements in the developmental genetics of stomata, our findings might hint at new breeding avenues, focused on stomata distribution. Provided urgent needs for increasing yields, the opportunities of enhancing traits of the physiological relevance of stomata should not be ignored.