Abstract
Species of the Theobroma genus are primarily known by their commercially valuable seeds, especially, T. cacao is one of the most important tropical perennial crops. Beside T. grandiflorum, T. bicolor, and T. angustifolium, T. cacao is the only species of the genus that has been better studied to obtain physiologically relevant information. The main objective of this work was to evaluate the leaf gas exchange in seedlings of seven species of the Theobroma genus, seeking to identify characteristics that could be used in T. cacao breeding programmes. The study was realized under greenhouse conditions using six-month-old seedlings, in which net photosynthetic rate (PN), stomatal conductance (gs), transpiration (E), as well as parameters derived from light curves (PNvs. photosynthetically active radiation) were evaluated. T. cacao, along with T. microcarpum, showed the lowest values of PN, gs, and E, while the highest values were presented by T. speciosum, which showed higher saturation irradiance and lower intrinsic and instantaneous water-use efficiencies, being considered the species less conservative in water use. Therefore, the parameters shown by the different evaluated species could serve to design T. cacao genotypes, through introgression of genes for specific environments such as the cabruca system widespread in southern Bahia, Brazil.
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