Open AccessBiocontrol Efficacy of Bacillus cereus Strain Bc-cm103 Against Meloidogyne incognita
Author(s) -
Nan Yin,
Jianlong Zhao,
Rui Li,
Yan Li,
Jian Ling,
Yuhong Yang,
Bingyan Xie,
Zhenchuan Mao
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plant disease
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.663
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 1943-7692
pISSN - 0191-2917
DOI - 10.1094/pdis-03-20-0648-re
Subject(s) - meloidogyne incognita , biology , terra incognita , biological pest control , bacillus cereus , root knot nematode , cereus , horticulture , strain (injury) , nematode , cucumis , biopesticide , agronomy , pesticide , bacteria , ecology , genetics , anatomy
Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) are soilborne pathogens that infect vegetable crops and cause major economic losses worldwide annually. Therefore, there is an urgent need for novel nematicides or biological control agents to reduce the damage caused by root-knot nematodes. In this study, we tested efficacy of the Bacillus cereus strain Bc-cm103, isolated from the rhizoplane of Cucumis metuliferus, against Meloidogyne incognita. Strain Bc-cm103 fermentation broth caused 100% mortality of the nematode second-stage juveniles within 12 h and decreased the egg hatching rate by 40.06% within 72 h compared with sterile water. Confocal laser-scanning microscopy revealed that strain Bc-cm103 formed a biofilm on cucumber (C. sativus) roots, which protected the roots from the infection of M. incognita. Additionally, strain Bc-cm103 activated the defense-responsive genes PR1, PR2, LOX1, and CTR1 in cucumber. Furthermore, strain Bc-cm103 significantly reduced the appearance of root galls in pot, split-root, and field tests. These results indicated that B. cereus strain Bc-cm103 had a strong suppressive effect on M. incognita and therefore could be used as a potential biocontrol agent against this pathogen.