Summary
This narrative review examines the interplay between stomatal and non-stomatal leaf traits governing water use efficiency in rice, a crop with substantial global freshwater demand. The authors argue that optimising stomatal traits alone is insufficient; rather, mesophyll conductance, leaf anatomy, and biochemical composition significantly modulate stomatal–photosynthetic relationships. They propose an integrated multi-trait breeding framework leveraging phenotyping, multi-omics, and crop modelling to develop water-efficient cultivars with maintained yield and climate resilience.
UK applicability
Direct applicability to UK rice cultivation is limited given that rice is not a primary cereal crop in the UK climate. However, the multi-trait breeding methodology and phenotyping approaches described may be transferable to water-efficiency improvement programmes in UK-grown cereals such as wheat and barley under projected climate change scenarios.
Key measures
Stomatal density, stomatal size, mesophyll conductance, leaf anatomy traits, biochemical composition, photosynthetic rate, water use efficiency, yield potential
Outcomes reported
The review analysed stomatal and non-stomatal leaf traits influencing water use efficiency in rice, examining how mesophyll conductance, leaf anatomy, and biochemical composition modulate the relationship between stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rate. It proposes a multi-trait breeding framework integrating high-throughput phenotyping, multi-omics technologies, and crop modelling to develop water-efficient rice varieties without compromising yield.
Topic tags
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