Morphological and molecular observations on the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera filipjevi from the Volga and South Ural regions of Russia

Authors: PRIDANNIKOV, MIKHAIL - Russian Institute Of Phytopathology; SUPRUNOVA, TATIANA - Russian Research Institute Of Vegetable Breeding And Seed 8 Production; SHUMILINA, DARIA - Russian Research Institute Of Vegetable Breeding And Seed 8 Production; LIMANTSEVA, LUDMILA - Russian Institute Of Phytopathology; Skantar, Andrea; Handoo, Zafar; Chitwood, David

Submitted to: Russian Journal of Nematology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/21/2015
Publication Date: 12/1/2015
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/61772
Citation: Pridannikov, M.V., Suprunova, T.P., Shumilina, D.V., Limantseva, L.A., Skantar, A.M., Handoo, Z.A., Chitwood, D.J. 2015. Morphological and molecular observations on the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera filipjevi from the Volga and South Ural regions of Russia. Russian Journal of Nematology. 23(2):113-124.

Interpretive Summary: Plant-parasitic nematodes are microscopic worms that attack plant roots and cause an estimated ten billion dollars of crop loss each year in the United States and 100 billion dollars globally. Cyst nematodes are an important problem damaging the roots of many kinds of plants worldwide. In this study, scientists from Russia in collaboration with ARS scientists conducted a survey to determine the distribution and species diversity of the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera filipjevi within the Volga and South Ural regions of the Russian Federation. Anatomical features and molecular markers were used to identify and describe these seven populations of cyst nematodes; the major discovery was that these populations were a different species from the common cereal cyst nematode already known to infest wheat fields in Russia and the United States. Because methods for identifying these and related nematode species are presented, the results are also significant because the new molecular information obtained will allow identification of cereal cyst nematode species to be performed more easily. Therefore, this research will be used by research scientists, action agencies, and extension agencies involved in nematode research and control.

Technical Abstract: During 2010-2012, a survey was conducted to determine the distribution and species diversity of the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera filipjevi within the Volga and South Ural regions of the Russian Federation. A total of 270 soil samples were collected. Seven populations of CCN were found in the rhizosphere of various cereal plants that showed symptoms of nematode disease in Saratov and Chelyabinsk Oblasts. The highest nematode population density was found in Chelyabinsk Oblast, with a mean density of 100 cysts/100 g soil. The morphological and morphometric characteristics of these populations are presented showing variations in cyst body width, underbridge and vulval slit lengths, and vulva-anus distance. The morphometrics of second-stage juveniles showed minor differences between the Saratov and Chelyabinsk populations against the paratype and the population from the Republic of Bashkortostan (Bashkiria). The body lengths of the Saratov and Chelyabinsk populations were smaller than the Bashkiria population and longer then the paratype. The pharynx lengths of the Saratov and Chelyabinsk populations were shorter than the paratype. For molecular characterization, DNA was extracted and purified from cysts of each population. Species-specific primers for H. avenae, H. filipjevi, and H. latipons were developed for conventional PCR amplification of the internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal RNA (ITS1-rRNA). Primer pairs developed for H. filipjevi and H. latipons amplified PCR products only from the target species, whereas primers for H. avenae also amplified H. pratensis. Molecular data confirmed the identity of the seven populations as H. filipjevi.