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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Mycology and Nematology Genetic Diversity and Biology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #357973
Title: First report of the cactus cyst nematode, Cactodera cacti, from a cactus garden in Idaho

Author
item Skantar, Andrea
item Handoo, Zafar
item KANTOR, MIHAIL - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE)
item Hult, Maria
item HAFEZ, SAAD - University Of Idaho

Submitted to: Journal of Nematology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/3/2019
Publication Date: 7/23/2019
Citation: Skantar, A.M., Handoo, Z.A., Kantor, M.R., Hult, M.N., Hafez, S.A. 2019. First report of the cactus cyst nematode, Cactodera cacti, from a cactus garden in Idaho. Journal of Nematology. 51:1-6. https://doi.org/10.21307/jofnem-2019-044.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21307/jofnem-2019-044

Interpretive Summary: Cyst nematodes are an important group of nematodes that damage the roots of many kinds of plants throughout the world. Some cyst nematodes infect cactus plants, which are important as ornamentals that protect against soil erosion, and as crops that provide feed for livestock and food for humans. In this study, a team of ARS scientists and a colleague from Idaho analyzed anatomical and molecular traits to identify the cactus cyst nematode isolated from a cactus in Idaho. This is the first report of this nematode from Idaho.This discovery is significant because new molecular information obtained for this species will facilitate future identifications of cactus cyst nematode. This report will serve as a useful guide to researchers and diagnosticians identifying important cyst nematodes from the genus Cactodera.

Technical Abstract: In April 2018, a cyst nematode was discovered from soil samples collected from a cactus garden collection in Meridian, Ada County, Idaho. The cactus garden was observed to have localized areas of heavily stunted plants. Roots from affected plants displayed moderate numbers of nematode cysts. The sample was sent to one of us (SH) who in turn forwarded the extracted cysts to the Mycology and Nematology Genetic Diversity and Biology Laboratory (MNGDBL) in Beltsville, MD where living nematode juveniles (J2) recovered from the cysts were examined for species identification. Observations of morphological characters and molecular analysis of ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS rDNA) indicated that the specimens were Cactodera cacti. Additional 28S rDNA and nuclear Hsp90 markers were of limited diagnostic value due to lack of resolution or data for species confirmation, but broaden the molecular database from Cactodera species. To our knowledge this is the first report of the cactus cyst nematode, Cactodera cacti, in Idaho.