Meloidogyne enterolobii detected on potatoes in South Africa
In South Africa, Meloidogyne enterolobii (EPPO A2 List) was first reported in 1997 in declining guava trees (Psidium guajava) in Mpumalanga province. During the 2011/2012 potato (Solanum tuberosum) growing season, 78 composite samples of potato tubers infected by root-knot nematodes were obtained from different potato-growing regions in South Africa. Molecular analysis (PCR, sequencing) detected M. enterolobii in 5 potato samples which had been collected from the KwaZulu-Natal province. None of the samples tested from the other regions were positive for M. enterolobii. The authors concluded that M. enterolobii could represent a threat to potato production in South Africa and that control methods should be investigated.
Sources
Onkendi EM, Moleleki LN (2013) Detection of Meloidogyne enterolobii in potatoes in South Africa and phylogenetic analysis based on intergenic region and the mitochondrial DNA sequences. European Journal of Plant Pathology 136(1), 1-5.