Resistance of barley varieties to Heterodera avenae in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China

The cereal cyst nematode, Heterodera avenae, is one of the most economically important pathogens impacting the worldwide production of cereals and is widely distributed in more than 16 regions in China. The present study used the numbers of nematodes inside the plant roots to evaluate the resistance/susceptibility of different subpopulations of barley Hordeum vulgare (QH2R, QH6R and TB2R) to H. avenae under field and pot conditions. Nematode development in two highly resistant varieties was also evaluated by in vivo experiment and microscopic observation. Analyses of 186 selected varieties showed the numbers of susceptible varieties identified with the number of females/cysts per plant (NFP) method were significantly higher than those identified with the Pf/Pi ratio (PPR) method, which indicated that the NFP method rather than the PPR method is more reliable to evaluate the resistance of barley. The field and pot experiment results indicated that the QH2R subpopulation had lower females/cysts numbers than QH6R and TB2R subpopulations, and eight HR varieties (Sunong 7617, Sunong 7635, Dongyuan 87-14, Rudong 14-46, Rudong 87-57, Rudong 87-8-45, Rudong 88-14-2, and Rudong 88-67-1) were identified in QH2R, with the NFP numbers below 4.2. Further microscopic observation of nematode development suggested that H. avenae often penetrated less into highly resistant varieties (Sunong 7635 and Dongyuan 87-14) and more frequently failed to develop into females than the susceptible barleys. The promising resistant varieties identified in the present research might be helpful for breeders to develop CCN-resistant cultivars and control H. avenae populations effectively at low costs.

Automated summary

The present study evaluated the resistance/susceptibility of different barley subpopulations to the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera avenae. The results showed that using the number of females/cysts per plant method was more reliable in determining susceptible varieties. Highly resistant varieties were found to have less nematode penetration and failure to develop into females.