Effects of Aphelenchoides besseyi Infection on Yield Traits of Different Rice Varieties (Lines)

[Objective] This study aimed to reveal the effects of Aphelenchoides besseyi infection on different rice varieties（lines）.[Method] By field observation and indoor phenotypic investigation,four conventional japonica rice varieties（lines） and japonica rice restorer line R161 under natural onset conditions were observed and analyzed.[Result] After being infected by A.besseyi,different rice varieties（lines）exhibited various symptoms.Specifically,Ning 1707,Ning 1818,Zhendao 88 and Nanjing 9108 had withered leaf tips and exhibited the symptoms of ＂small grains and erect panicles＂;japonica rice restorer line R161 only had withered leaf tips without symptoms of ＂small grains and erect panicles＂,and the withering symptoms occurred in flag leaf tip,whole flag leaf and top second leaf,respectively.After being infected by A.besseyi,all the experimental materials could sprout normally,but their plant height,panicle length,seed-setting rate and 1 000-grain weight were affected to varying degrees.In addition,after being infected by A.besseyi,various symptomatic tissues of R161 exerted different effects on rice yield.Especially,panicles with withered and twisted whole flag leaf were most affected.[Conclusion] This study provided the basis for further exploration of the damages of A.besseyi infection to rice and development of corresponding control measures.

Effects of Temperature,Humidity and Different Rice Growth Stages on Vertical Migration of Aphelenchoides besseyi

The vertical migration of Aphelenchoides besseyi under different temperatures and humidities and at different rice growth stages was investigated. It was found that the optimum temperature for the development and reproduction of A. besseyiwas 25-30℃. At the same temperature, the rate of vertical migration increased with rising relative humidity. Artificial inoculation tests showed that at the elongation stage, nematodes survived mainly on the upper and middle parts of rice culms and the number of nematodes decreased by 50% at 20 days after inoculation compared with that at 5 days after inoculation. Whereas at the booting stage, nematodes accumulated in young panicles and reproduced quickly,, and the average number of nematodes at 20 days after inoculation increased to 164.5, three times of that at 5 days after inoculation.

Assessment of Rice Cultivars in China for Field Resistance to Aphelenchoides besseyi

The effect ofAphelenchoides besseyi on 27 cultivars of rice （23japonica and 4 indica） was assessed in the field for two seasons during 2010 and 2011. The vigorous pathogenic nematodes culturing on Botrytis cinerea were used for this experiment. Inoculation was carried out at the tilling stage; the growth parameters and nematode population were recorded at the end of growth of rice plants. The results showed that the cultivars differed in their response to infection. Most of cultivars were lack of the characteristic symptom of white tip, which was seen less frequently than the other two symptoms, namely small grains and erect panicles; moreover, the expression of symptoms was probably hereditary. The infection lowered the values of all the measured biological parameters, namely length of the stem and of the panicle, the number of filled grains per panicle, and 100-grain weight, in all the cultivars. The final nematode population indicated that the threshold of economic damage had also been exceeded in 10 cultivars, and none of them was immune. Three japonica cultivars proved most vulnerable whereas Tetep, an indica type, showed a level of resistance potentially useful in controlling A. besseyi.

Description of Aphelenchoides besseyi from Abnormal Rice with ‘Small Grains and Erect Panicles’ Symptom in China

The abnormal rice with small grains and erect panicles were found on a large scale in China, which showed shortend rice panicle and decreased number of grains in comparison with normal rice, and the grain was small and black-brown, and some of them were distorted, while the flag leaf was normal. A kind of nematode of Aphelenchoides was isolated from the grains of rice variety Wuyujing 3 which performed ＇small grains and erect panicles＇ symptom. There were 2014 nematodes in one hundred grains infected, and up to 74 in single grain, 92 percent of the grains tested had nematodes in the infested panicles. The diagnosis characters of nematode include lateral fields about one-fourth as wide as body, with 4 incisures. The terminus bears a mucro of diverse shape with 3-4 pointed processes. The female post-vulval uterine sac extends less than 50% of distance from vulva to anus, no sperm in it. Oocytes usually arrange in 2-4 rows. The male spicules have a moderately developed rostrum. Morphological measurements showed it to be conspecific with Aphelenchoides besseyi Christie, 1942.

Dynamic Development of Aphelenchoides besseyi on Rice Plant by Artificial Inoculation in the Greenhouse

A study was done on the relationship between Aphelenchoides besseyi and the symptoms of small grains and erect panicles. This is an important rice disease in Jiangsu Province, China. A. besseyi was extracted from small grains and erect panicles and cultured artificially, and then inoculated into bud and leaf sheaths of seedlings of two Oryza sativa cultivars, namely Zhendao 2 and Wuyunjing 7 in a greenhouse. The effect on rice growth, in particular the small grains and erect panicles, was revealed by the extent of the disease, seed expansion stages, nematode load, and nematode mortality. In contrast to healthy seedlings, the height, length, and the numbers of spikelets of unhealthy panicles of Zhendao 2 were decreased by 6.7, 16.4, and 13.5%, respectively. Before anthesis, nematodes were attracted to the leaf sheath and apical meristem, nematode load increased by 40%; after anthesis, nematodes occurred in spikelets principally and the number increased by 90.8%. The percentages of infected seeds and nematode load were highest in plump seeds and lowest in empty seeds. Nematode mortality on grain with normal endosperm was lower than seeds with abnormal endosperm. Results indicated that A. besseyi was the pathogen in rice with the symptoms of small grains and erect panicles. Wuyunjing 7 manifests only the small grains and erect panicles symptoms and not the symptoms of leaf white-tip. These symptoms of small grains and erect panicles are new symptom records for the disease caused by A. besseyi on rice.

The new effector AbSCP1 of foliar nematode(Aphelenchoides besseyi) is required for parasitism rice

Plant parasitic nematodes secrete effector proteins to parasitize hosts successfully. Of these proteins, serine carboxypeptidases have critical roles in pathogenicity. This study investigated the role of new effector AbSCP1 in Aphelenchoides besseyi pathogenicity. In situ hybridization and qRT-PCR analyses indicated that AbSCP1 was exclusively expressed in the esophageal glands and upregulated in juveniles. Subcellular localization assays indicated that the protein was expressed in the nucleus. The ability to hydrolyze C-terminal amino acid residues was proven for AbSCP1. Moreover, RNAi significantly reduced the expression of AbSCP1 and RNAi-treated nematodes’ reproductive potential. Pathogenicity assays on rice showed that RNAi-treated nematodes were less pathogenic than the untreated control groups. These results suggest the important role of AbSCP1 in the A. besseyi infection process.