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The characterization of chitinolytic soil bacterial isolates for their antagonistic activity against root knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita: an effort towards developing ‘green’ nematicidal agents

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Abstract

Root knot nematode (Meloidogyne spp.) is one of the most infective nematode genera having a wide range of host plants. The study was aimed to isolate chitinolytic soil bacteria, characterize their properties, and to determine their antagonism against root knot nematodes. Out of the ninety-five bacterial isolates, twenty-five Gram-positive and non-hemolytic isolates were screened based on the production of extracellular enzymes, biofilm formation, antifungal activity, and in vitro antagonism against root knot nematodes. Ten isolates exhibited statistically significant antagonism in terms of percent mortality of the second-stage juvenile (J2) and percent egg hatch inhibition compared to untreated sets. In the polyhouse trial, these ten isolates applied at 1.0 billion cfu per growbag planted with cucumber seedlings reduced the egg masses to 69%, number of females to 64%, and final nematode populations to 68%. Subsequently, vegetative growth parameters such as shoot height, shoot weight, and root weight increased, compared to the untreated control treatment, in plants grown for forty-five days in soil infected with nematodes. Nine among the ten isolates were identified as Bacillus spp. (99–100% similarity), and one isolate was identified as Paenibacillus sp. (95% similarity) using whole-genome sequencing. Overall, the present study suggested that the chitinolytic bacterial strains showing biofilm formation, enzyme production, and antifungal activity demonstrate an important trait to exhibit antagonism against root knot nematodes.

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Acknowledgements

The study was financially supported by Zytex Biotech Private Limited, Mumbai, as an in-house PhD project. The research was carried out in coordination with the Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, India. The authors would like to acknowledge management authorities, Zytex Biotech Private Limited for providing the necessary fundings for the research work. Also authors acknowledge Priyank Mhatre for reviewing the manuscript and Anjali Bose, Darshana Chouhan for support in bioinformatics work.

Funding

This work was funded by Zytex Biotech Private Limited.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zytex Biotech Private Limited, 702/B Polaris, Marol, Andheri E, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400059, India

    Prasad Pawar, Jayraj Doshi & K. Poornima

  2. Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), N.P. Marg, Matunga, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400019, India

    Prajakta Dandekar

  3. Agricultural Engineering & Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, 641003, India

    S. G. Patil

  4. Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Coimbatore, India

    K. Poornima

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  1. Prasad Pawar
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  2. Jayraj Doshi
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  4. Prajakta Dandekar
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  5. K. Poornima
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Correspondence to Prajakta Dandekar or K. Poornima.

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Pawar, P., Doshi, J., Patil, S.G. et al. The characterization of chitinolytic soil bacterial isolates for their antagonistic activity against root knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita: an effort towards developing ‘green’ nematicidal agents. BioControl 68, 511–524 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-023-10210-9

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