Multivariate statistics applied to the reaction of common bean plants to parasitism by Meloidogyne javanica

The availability of common bean cultivars tolerant to Meloidogyne javanica is limited in Brazil. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the reactions of 33 common bean genotypes (23 landrace, 8 commercial, 1 susceptible standard and 1 resistant standard) to M. javanica, employing multivariate statistics to discriminate the reaction of the genotypes. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse using a completely randomized design with seven replicates. The seeds were sown in 1-L pots containing autoclaved soil and sand in a 1:1 ratio (v:v). On day 19, after emergence of the seedlings, the plants were treated with inoculum containing 4000 eggs + second-stage juveniles (J2). At 60 days after inoculation, the seedlings were evaluated based on biometric and parasitism-related traits, such as number of galls, final nematode population per root system, reproduction factor, and percent reduction in the reproduction factor of the nematode (%RRF). The data were subjected to analysis of variance using the F-test. The Mahalanobis generalized distance was used to obtain the dissimilarity matrix, and the average linkage between groups was used for clustering. The use of multivariate statistics allowed groups to be separated according to the resistance levels of genotypes, as observed in the %RRF. The landrace genotypes FORT-09, FORT-17, FORT-31, FORT-32, FORT-34 and FORT-36 presented resistance to M. javanica; thus, these genotypes can be considered potential sources of resistance.