Nematicidal volatile compounds produced by Bacillus subtilis against Meloidogyne incognita

Abstract

Gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii Hook) is a popular commercial cut flower crop grown throughout the world in a wide range of climatic conditions. Several plant parasitic nematodes are reported to be associated with gerbera. Among them, root knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood, is a major limiting factor in commercial polyhouse gerbera production. Bacillus subtilis (Cohn, 1872), a capable rhizobacterium, gained global attention as a biopesticide for control of several plant diseases. The potential of this biocontrol agent has been reported against several plant parasitic nematodes as well as different soil borne pathogens. The present study was conducted to identify antinematicidal volatile compounds produced by B. subtilis strain BG42 on gerbera root infested with M. incognita. The 2-Amino-1,8-dihydro-7-methoxy-8-oxopyrrolo[4,3,2-de] quinoline and Stigmasterol compounds were found in both B. subtilis BG42 alone treatment and concomitant inoculation of M. incognita + B. subtilis strain BG42 treatment in GC-MS analysis. These two compounds might have played an important role in imparting resistance to gerbera against M. incognita under polyhouse conditions