Loading...

Research on Crops

Screening of six cowpea lines against Meloidogyne javanica under greenhouse conditions 


DOI: 10.31830/2348-7542.2026.ROC-1328    | Article Id: ROC-1328 | Page : 619-623
Citation :- Screening of six cowpea lines against Meloidogyne javanica under greenhouse conditions. Res. Crop. 27: 619-623
K. P. MALATJI, K. M. POFU, A. GERRANO AND P. W. MASHELA kgashane.malatji@ul.ac.za
Address : Department of Plant Production, Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering, Green Biotechnologies Research Centre of Excellence, Faculty of Science and Agriculture, University of Limpopo, Private Bag X1106, Sovenga, 0727, South Africa
Submitted Date : 27-05-2026
Accepted Date : 11-08-2026
Online Published:

Abstract

Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) is an important grain legume widely cultivated in sub-Saharan Africa for food security, nutritional supplementation, income generation, and soil fertility improvement. However, productivity of the crop is severely constrained by root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.), particularly the thermophilic species Meloidogyne incognita, Meloidogyne javanica and Meloidogyne enterolobii. The objective of this study was to determine the host status of six cowpea lines against M. javanica under greenhouse conditions. Two greenhouse experiments were conducted at the University of Limpopo, South Africa, using a randomised complete block design with six treatments replicated six times. Fourteen days after sowing, each seedling was inoculated with 3,000 eggs plus second-stage juveniles (J2) of M. javanica. Nematode assessments were conducted 56 days after inoculation. Reproductive potential (RP) was calculated as the ratio of final nematode population density to fresh root mass. Significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) were observed among cowpea lines for nematode reproduction. All test lines supported nematode reproduction, with RP values consistently exceeding unity. The findings demonstrate that all evaluated cowpea lines were susceptible hosts to M. javanica and are therefore unsuitable for deployment in crop rotation systems aimed at suppressing root-knot nematode populations. The study highlights the importance of incorporating nematode resistance screening into cowpea breeding programmes to support the development of integrated nematode management strategies under climate-smart agricultural systems.

Keywords

Cowpea host status Meloidogyne javanica reproductive potential root-knot nematodes screening. 

References

Boukar, O., Belko, N., Chamarthi, S., Togola, A., Batieno, J., Owusu, E., Haruna, M., Diallo, S., Umar, M. L., Olufajo, O. and Fatokun, C. (2019). Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata): genetics, genomics and breeding. Plant Breed. 138: 415-24.
Ehlers, J. D. and Hall, A. E. (1997). Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.). Field Crops Res. 53: 187-204.
Escobar, C. and Fenoll, C. (2015). Plant Nematode Interactions: A View on Compatible Interrelationships, 73rd edn. Academic Press, Elsevier, Amsterdam. pp: 461. doi:10.1016/ S0065-2296(15)X0002-3.
Fourie, H., Spaull, V. W., Jones, R. K., Daneel, M. S. and De Waele, D. (2022). Nematology in South Africa: A View from the 21st Century. Springer Nature, Cham, Switzerland. pp: 13-31.
Gheysen, G. and Fenoll, C. (2002). Gene expression in nematode feeding sites. Ann. Rev. Phytopathol. 40: 191-219.
Hewezi, T. and Baum, T. J. (2015). Gene Silencing in Nematode Feeding Sites. Adv. Bot. Res. 73: 221-39.
Hussey, R. S. and Barker, K. R. (1973). A comparison of methods of collecting inocula of Meloidogyne species, including a new technique. Plant. Dis. Rep. 57: 1025-28.
Jenkins, W. R. (1964). A rapid centrifugal-flotation technique for separating nematodes from soil. Plant. Dis. Rep. 48, pp. 692.
Kaplan, D. T. and Davis, E. L. (1987). Mechanisms of plant incompatibility with nematodes. In: Veech, J.A. and Dickson, D.W. (Eds.). Vistas on Nematology. Society of Nematologists, Hyattsville, Maryland. pp: 267-76.
Karuri, H. W., Olago, D., Neilson, R., Mararo, E. and Villinger, J. (2017). A survey of root-knot nematodes and resistance to Meloidogyne incognita in sweet potato varieties from Kenyan fields. Crop Prot. 92: 114-21.
Marais, M., Swart, A., Fourie, H., Berry, S. D., Knoetze, R. and Malan, A. P. (2017). Techniques and procedures. In: Fourie, H., Spaull, V., Jones, R., Daneel, M. and De Waele, D. (Eds.). Nematology in South Africa: A View from the 21st Century. Springer International Publishing, Cham, Switzerland. pp: 73-117.
Mashela, P. W., Dube, Z. P. and Pofu, K. M. (2015). Managing phytotoxicity and inconsistent nematode suppression in soil amended with phytonematicides. In: Organic Amendments and Soil Suppressiveness in Plant Disease Management (Eds. Meghvansi, M.K. and Varma, A.). Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp: 147-73.
Nicol, J. M., Turner, S. J., Coyne, D. L., den Nijs, L., Hockland, S. and Maafi, Z. T. (2011). Current nematode threats to world agriculture. In:Genomics and Molecular Genetics of Plant-Nematode Interactions. (Eds. Jones, J., Gheysen, G. and Fenoll, C.). Springer, Dordrecht, Netherlands. pp: 21-43
Oliveira, A. S., Schwambach, T. I., Sinhorin, A. P., Oliveira, M. R. C., Alessi, K. A., Filho, F. A., Pina, D. S. and Santos, S. (2012). Root-knot nematodes associated with cowpea production systems in tropical regions. Afr.. J Agric Res. 7: 1545-52.
Ononuju, C. C. and Nzenwa, O. P. (2011). Assessment of six cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) varieties for resistance to root-knot nematodes. Int. J. Appl. Agric. Res.  6: 77-82.
Pofu, K. M., Mashela, P. W., Laurie, S. M. and Oelofse, D. (2017). Host-status of sweet potato cultivars to South African root-knot nematodes. Acta Agric. Scand. B — Soil Plant Sci. 67: 62-66.
Seinhorst, J. W. (1967). The relationship between population increase and population density in plant parasitic nematodes. Nematologica 13: 157-71.
Siddique, S., Matera, C., Radakovic, Z. S., Hasan, M. S., Gutbrod, P., Rozanska, E., Sobczak, M., Torres, M. A. and Grundler, F. M. W. (2014). Parasitic worms stimulate host NADPH oxidases to produce reactive oxygen species that limit plant cell death and promote infection. Sci. Signal. 7: doi:10.1126/scisignal.2005273.
Taylor, A. L. and Sasser, J. N. (1978). Biology, Identification and Control of Root-knot Nematodes (Meloidogyne species). North Carolina State University Graphics, Raleigh, USA. pp: 107-11.

Global Footprints