Nematodes: General morphology and reproduction, Classification, Symptoms

and nature of damage caused by plant parasitic nematodes (Heterodera,

Meloidogyne, Anguina, Radopholus etc.)

"Nematode" is a greek word (nema = thread, oides = form) i.e. thread like organisms as they
look like tiny threads moving under microscope.

Synonyms: Threadworms, eelworms (serpentile eel like body), round worms, nemas,
paudh/padap krimi etc.

Body Shape: Nematodes are generally vermiform having a cylindrical body tapering towards
both anterior as well as posterior ends and having maximum diameter near mid body.

Nematodes belong to the kingdom Animalia. Nematodes are wormlike in appearance but quite
distinct taxonomically from the true worms. Most of the several thousand species of nematodes
live freely in fresh or salt waters or in the soil, and feed on microorganisms and microscopic
plants and animals. Numerous species of nematodes attack and parasitize humans and animals,
in which they cause various diseases. Several hundred species, however, are known to feed on
living plants, obtaining their food with spears or stylets and causing a variety of plant diseases
worldwide. The annual worldwide losses caused by nematodes on the life-sustaining crops,
which include all grains and legumes, banana, cassava, coconut, potato, sugar beet, sugarcane,
sweet potato, and yam, are estimated to be about 11%; Losses for most other economically
important crops (vegetables, fruits, and nonedible field crops) are about 14%, for a total of over
$80 billion annually.

Typical plant parasitic nematod Close-up of the head of a plant parasitic nematode showing
the spear or stylet.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF PLANT PATHOGENIC NEMATODES

Morphology
Plant-parasitic nematodes are small, 300 to 1,000 micrometers, with some up to 4 millimeters
long, by 15–35 micrometers wide. Their small diameter makes them invisible to the naked eye,
but they can be observed easily under the microscope. Nematodes are, in general, eel shaped and
round in cross section, with smooth, unsegmented bodies, without legs or other appendages. The
females of some species, however, become swollen at maturity and have pear-shaped or spheroid
bodies.

Anatomy
The nematode body is more or less transparent. It is covered by a colorless cuticle, which is
usually marked by striations or other markings. The cuticle molts when a nematode goes through
the successive juvenile stages. The cuticle is produced by the hypodermis, which consists of
living cells and extends into the body cavity as four chords separating four bands of longitudinal
muscles. The muscles enable the nematode to move. The body cavity contains a fluid through
which circulation and respiration take place. The digestive system is a hollow tube extending
from the mouth through the esophagus, intestine, rectum, and anus. Lips, usually six in number,
surround the mouth. Most plant parasitic nematodes have a hollow stylet or spear, but a few have
a solid modified spear. The spear is used to puncture holes in plant cells and through which to
withdraw nutrients from the cells.

The reproductive systems of nematodes are well developed. Females have one or two ovaries,
followed by an oviduct and uterus terminating in a vulva. The male reproductive structure is
similar to that of the female, but there is a testis, seminal vesicle, and a terminus in a common
opening with the intestine. A pair of protrusible, copulatory spicules are also present in the male.
Reproduction in plant parasitic nematodes is through eggs and may be sexual or parthenogenetic.
Many species lack males.

Ecology and Spread

Almost all plant pathogenic nematodes live part of their lives in the soil. Many live freely in the
soil, feeding superficially on roots and underground stems, and in all, even in the specialized
sedentary parasites, the eggs, the preparasitic juvenile stages, and the males are found in the soil
for all or part of their lives. Soil temperature, moisture, and aeration affect survival and
movement of nematodes in the soil. Nematodes occur in greatest abundance in the top 15 to 30
centimeters of soil. The distribution of nematodes in cultivated soil is usually irregular and is
greatest in or around the roots of susceptible plants, which they follow sometimes to
considerable depths (30–150 centimeters or more). The greater concentration of nematodes in the
region of host plant roots is due primarily to their more rapid reproduction on the food supply
available and also to attraction of nematodes by substances released into the rhizosphere. To
these must be added the so-called hatching factor effect of substances originating from the root
that diffuse into the surrounding soil, markedly stimulating the hatching of eggs of certain
species. Most nematode eggs, however, hatch freely in water in the absence of any special
stimulus. Nematodes spread through the soil slowly under their own power. The overall distance
traveled by a nematode probably does not exceed a few meters per season. Nematodes move
faster in the soil when the pores are lined with a thin film of water (a few micrometers thick)
than when the soil is waterlogged. In addition to their own movement, however, nematodes can
be spread easily by anything that moves and can carry particles of soil. Farm equipment,
irrigation, flood or drainage water, animal feet, birds, and dust storms spread nematodes in local
areas, whereas over long distances nematodes are spread primarily with farm produce and
nursery plants. A few nematodes that attack the aboveground parts of plants not only spread
through the soil as described earlier, but they are also splashed to the plants by falling rain or
overhead watering. Some species ascend wet plant stem or leaf surfaces on their own power.
Further spread takes place on contact of infected plant parts with adjacent healthy plants. Two
genera of the family Aphelenchoididae, namely Aphelenchoides (bud and leaf nematodes) and
Bursaphelenchus (the pine wilt and red-ring nematodes), seldom, if ever, enter the soil. They
survive instead in the tissues of the plants they infect and, for the latter, in its insect vectors.

Classification
All plant parasitic nematodes belong to the phylum Nematoda. Most of the important parasitic
genera belong to the order Tylenchida, but a few belong to the order Dorylaimida.

Phylum: Nematoda
Order: Tylenchida
Suborder: Tylenchina

Super family: Tylenchoidea

Family: Anguinidae
Genus: Anguina, wheat or seed-gall nematode
Ditylenchus, stem or bulb nematode of alfalfa, onion, narcissus, etc.

Family: Belonolaimidae
Genus: Belonolaimus, sting nematode of cereals, legumes, cucurbits, etc.
Tylenchorhynchus, stunt nematode of tobacco, corn, cotton, etc.

Family: Pratylenchidae
Genus: Pratylenchus, lesion nematode of almost all crop plants and trees
Radopholus, burrowing nematode of banana, citrus, coffee, sugarcane, etc.
Nacobbus, false root-knot nematode

Family: Hoplolaimidae
Genus: Hoplolaimus, lance nematode of corn, sugarcane, cotton, alfalfa, etc.
Rotylenchus, spiral nematode of various plants
Heliocotylenchus, spiral nematode of various plants
Rotylenchulus, reniform nematode of cotton, papaya, tea, tomato, etc.
Scutellonema, dry rot nematode of yam, cassava, etc.
Family: Heteroderidae
Genus: Globodera, round cyst nematode of potato
Heterodera, cyst nematode of tobacco, soybean, sugar beets, cereals
Meloidogyne, root-knot nematode of almost all crop plants

Superfamily: Criconematoidea

Family: Criconematidae
Genus: Criconemella, formerly Criconema and Criconemoides, ring nematode of woody plants,
cause of
peach tree short life
Hemicycliophora, sheath nematode of various plants

Family: Paratylenchidae
Genus: Paratylenchus, pin nematode of various plants

Family: Tylenchulidae
Genus: Tylenchulus, citrus nematode of citrus, grapes, olive, lilac, etc.

Suborder: Aphelenchina
Family: Aphelenchoididae
Genus: Aphelenchoides, foliar nematode of chrysanthemum, strawberry, begonia, rice, coconut,
etc.
Bursaphelenchus, the pine wilt and the coconut palm or red ring nematodes

Order: Dorylaimida
Family: Longidoridae
Genus: Longidorus, needle nematode of some plants
Xiphinema, dagger nematode of trees, woody vines, and many annuals

Family: Trichodoridae
Genus: Paratrichodorus, stubby-root nematode of cereals, vegetables, cranberry, and apple
Trichodorus, stubby-root nematode of sugar beet, potato, cereals, and apple

In terms of habitat, pathogenic nematodes are either ectoparasites, i.e., species that do not
normally enter root tissue but feed only from the outside on the cells near the root surfaces, or
endoparasites, i.e., species that enter the host and feed form within. Both of these can be either
migratory, i.e., they live freely in the soil and feed on plants without becoming attached or move
around inside the plant, or sedentary, i.e., species that, once within a root, do not move about.
Ectoparasitic nematodes include the ring nematodes (sedentary) and the dagger, stubby root, and
sting nematodes (all migratory). Endoparasitic nematodes include the root knot, cyst, and citrus
nematodes (all sedentary), and the lesion, stem and bulb, burrowing, leaf, stunt, lance, and spiral
nematodes (all somewhat migratory). Of these, the cyst, lance, and spiral nematodes may be
somewhat ectoparasitic, at least during part of their lives.
SYMPTOMS CAUSED BY NEMATODES
Nematode infections of plants result in the appearance of symptoms on roots as well as on the
aboveground parts of plants. Root symptoms may appear as root lesions, root knots or root galls,
excessive root branching, injured root tips, and, when nematode infections are accompanied by
plant pathogenic or saprophytic bacteria and fungi, as root rots. The root symptoms are usually
accompanied by non characteristic symptoms in the aboveground parts of plants, appearing
primarily as reduced growth, and symptoms of nutrient deficiencies such as yellowing of foliage,
excessive wilting in hot or dry weather, reduced yields, and poor quality of products. Certain
species of nematodes invade the aboveground portions of plants rather than the roots, and on
these they cause galls, necrotic lesions and rots, twisting or distortion of leaves and stems, and
abnormal development of the floral parts. Certain nematodes attack cereals or grasses and form
galls full of nematodes in place of seed.

HOW NEMATODES AFFECT PLANTS

The direct mechanical injury inflicted by nematodes while feeding causes only slight damage to
plants. Most of the damage seems to be caused by a secretion of saliva injected into the plants
while the nematodes are feeding. Some nematode species are rapid feeders. They puncture a cell
wall, inject saliva into the cell, withdraw part of the cell contents, and move on within a few
seconds. Others feed much more slowly and may remain at the same puncture for several hours
or days. These, as well as the females of species that become established in or on roots
permanently, inject saliva intermittently as long as they are feeding. The feeding process causes
the affected plant cells to react, resulting in dead or devitalized root tips and buds, lesion
formation and tissue breakdown, swellings and galls of various kinds, and crinkled and distorted
stems and foliage. Some of these manifestations are caused by the dissolution of infected tissues
by nematode enzymes, which, with or without the help of toxic metabolites, cause tissue
disintegration and the death of cells. Others are caused by abnormal cell enlargement
(hypertrophy), by suppression of cell divisions, or by stimulation of cell division proceeding in a
controlled manner and resulting in the formation of galls or of large numbers of lateral roots at or
near the points of infection. Plant diseases caused by nematodes are complex. Root-feeding
species often decrease the ability of plants to take up water and nutrients from soil and thus cause
symptoms of water and nutrient deficiencies in the aboveground parts of plants. In some cases,
however, it is the plant–nematode biochemical interactions that impair the overall physiology of
plants, as well as the role nematodes play in providing courts for entry of other pathogens that
are primarily responsible for plant injury. The mechanical damage or withdrawal of food from
plants by nematodes is generally less significant but may become all important when nematode
populations become very large.

Plant Pathogenic Nematodes

S.No. Genus Common name and host

1. Anguina Wheat or seed gall nematode
2. Ditylenchus Stem or bulb nematode of alfalfa, onion
3. Belonolaimus Sting nematode of cereals, legumes, cucurbits
4. Tylenchorhynchus Stunt nematode of tobacco, corn, cotton
5. Pratylenchus Lesion nematode of crops and trees
6. Radopholus Burrowing nematode of banana, citrus, coffee, sugarcane
7. Hoplolaimus Lance nematode of corn, sugarcane, cotton etc.
8. Rotylenchus Spiral nematode of various plants
9. Heliocotylenchus Spiral nematode of various plants
10. Rotylenchulus Reniform nematode of cotton, papaya, tea, tomato etc.
11. Scutellonema Dry rot nematode of yam, cassava
12. Globodera Golden/Round cyst nematode of potato
13. Heterodera Cyst nematode of tobacco, soybean, sugar beets, cereals
14. Meloidogyne Root knot nematode of all crops
15. Criconemella Ring nematode of woody plants
16. Hemicycliophora Sheath nematode of various plants
17. Paratylenchus Pin nematode of various plants
18. Tylenchulus Citrus nematode of citrus, grape, olive etc.
19. Aphelenchoides Foliar nematode of chrysanthemum, strawberry, begonia,
rice, coconut, etc.
20. Bursaphelenchus Pine wilt, coconut palm or red ring nematode
21. Longidorus Needle nematode of plants
22. Xiphinema Dagger nematode of trees, woody vines
23. Paratrichodorus Stubby root nematode of cereals, vegetables and apple
24. Trichodorus Stubby root nematode of cereals, sugar beet, potato and
apple