The objective of this work was to study leaf anatomy of pineapple plants in order to improve acclimatization protocols. In vitro plantlets weighting an average of 3.1 g and greenhouse plantlets derived from in vitro stock material, after six and ten months of culture, weighting an average of 50.2 and 65 g, respectively, were used. Stomatal density was determined on the abaxial epidermis, at the basal, median, and apical portions of the leaf, using a completely randomized design under 2x3 factorial (two culture environments and three leaf regions) with six replicates. Thickness of the hypodermis, aquiferous and photosynthetic parenchyma were determined at the median portion of the leaf using a totally randomized design with three treatments and four replicates. The basic structure of the pineapple leaf under in vitro conditions did not change. However, stomatal frequency, cuticular and epidermal wall thickening, shape and sinuosity of the cell walls of aquiferous parenchyma and the presence of papillary cells were verified as a result of environmental conditions during culture, indicating phenotypic plasticity.
Ananas comosus; environment of cultivation; micropropagation; acclimatization
