Agrotechnology

Plant-parasitic nematodes associated with grain crops and associated weeds in South Africa, with emphasis on the phylogenetic position of Meloidogyne species

10^th International Conference on AGRICULTURE & HORTICULTURE

October 02-04, 2017 London, UK

Ebrahim Shokoohi, Driekie Fourie, Akhona Mbatyoti, Maretha Pretorius and Nancy Ntidi

North-West University, South Africa
Agricultural Research Council â?? Grain Crops Institute, South Africa

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Agrotechnology

Abstract:

Nematode surveys in South African grain crop production areas were conducted in maize and soybean fields, and weeds associated with the crops. The abundance, occurrence and identity of the economically most important nematode pests of such hosts were hence determined. Results indicated that Meloidogyne spp. and Pratylenchus spp. were generally the most abundant plant-parasitic nematode crops infecting these crops and weeds. However, Meloidogyne spp. is the most destructive and distributed nematodes in these cultivated areas. Morphological studies based on perineal pattern morphology of Meloidogyne species revealed that M. incognita and M. javanica were the two predominant species in the grain production areas South Africa. Molecular studies of Meloidogyne based on the COI and NADH5 genes of the mtDNA and the D2-D3 segments of 28S rDNA indicated that the populations studied belonged to those species. However, the phylogenetic position of these species is still unresolved. Identification of the species based on the SCAR-PCR also showed M. javanica and M. incognita as the most dominant species. In conclusion, this study represents an extensive initiative to get a better understanding of the Meloidogyne spp. as well as other plant parasitic nematodes that currently hamper local grain seed production.

Biography :

Ebrahim Shokoohi is an Iranian Plant Pathologist, Nematologist, and Assistant Professor at Iranian University and Post-doctoral Fellow at North-West University of South Africa. His research focuses on plant-parasitic and beneficial nematodes. He has written several papers and book chapters after years of experience in research and teaching at university level. The main focusing of his research is on molecular and morphological taxonomy of nematodes.