Stubby root nematodes and associated corky ringspot disease

Authors: FU, ZHEN - University Of Washington; SATHUVALLI, SAGAR - Oregon State University; Swisher Grimm, Kylie; CHENG, ZHIQIANG - University Of Hawaii

Submitted to: Potato Progress
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/12/2019
Publication Date: 2/13/2019
Citation: Fu, Z., Sathuvalli, S., Swisher Grimm, K.D., Cheng, Z. 2019. Stubby root nematodes and associated corky ringspot disease. Potato Progress. 19(1).

Interpretive Summary: Corky ringspot disease of potato is an economically devastating disease in the United States caused by the nematode-transmitted virus, tobacco rattle virus. In collaboration with researchers at Washington State University, Oregon State University, University of Hawaii and AgNema, scientists at the USDA-ARS Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research Unit in Prosser, WA, and the USDA-ARS Horticultural Crops Research Unit in Corvallis, OR, generated a review of the current knowledge of corky ringspot disease in the Pacific Northwestern United States. Here, our latest understanding of the stubby root nematode vector, the tobacco rattle virus itself, and chemical and cultural management practices are explored. This summation of corky ringspot disease provides an informative newsletter to be disseminated to growers in the Pacific Northwest.

Technical Abstract: Stubby root nematodes (SRN) damage plant roots, and more devastatingly, they vector tobacco rattle virus (TRV), the causal agent of corky ringspot disease on potatoes. Corky ringspot is a major factor in the devaluation and culling of potato tubers in the Northwest USA. A recent field survey showed that SRN were third in prevalence of plant-parasitic nematodes following root lesion and root-knot nematodes. There is little current data on the prevalence of TRV, as the last field survey was conducted over two decades ago. Past research has shed light on the distribution and ecology of the nematode, plant-nematode interactions, and chemical and cultural control methods of corky ringspot. However, more research is warranted to obtain an updated status of TRV in the Northwest and to determine whether populations of the virus and nematode are genetically different throughout the Northwest potato growing region. Here we briefly overview the basic biology of the nematode, associated TRV, and primary management strategies of corky ringspot in the Northwest.