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Identification of Bacterial Wilt (Erwinia tracheiphila) Resistances in USDA Melon Collection
Bimala Acharya1, Lucas Mackasmiel1, Ali Taheri1
1Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN 37209, USA.
Abstract:
Bacterial wilt (BW) caused by the Gram-negative bacterium, Erwinia tracheiphila (Et.), is an important disease in melon (Cucumis melo L.). BW-resistant commercial melon varieties are not widely available. There are also no effective pathogen-based disease management strategies as BW-infected plants ultimately die. The purpose of this study is to identify BW-resistant melon accessions in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) collection. We tested 118 melon accessions in two inoculation trials under controlled environments. Four-week-old seedlings of test materials were mechanically inoculated with the fluorescently (GFP) labeled or unlabeled E. tracheiphila strain, Hca1-5N. We recorded the number of days to wilting of inoculated leaf (DWIL), days to wilting of whole plant (DWWP) and days to death of the plant (DDP). We identified four melon lines with high resistance to BW inoculation based on all three parameters. Fluorescent microscopy was used to visualize the host colonization dynamics of labeled bacteria from the point of inoculation into petioles, stem and roots in resistant and susceptible melon accessions, which provides an insight into possible mechanisms of BW resistance in melon. The resistant melon lines identified from this study could be valuable resistance sources for breeding of BW resistance as well as the study of cucurbit-E. tracheiphila interactions.
Insights
Researchers identified four melon lines resistant to bacterial wilt (BW), a disease caused by Erwinia tracheiphila. These findings offer valuable sources for developing new BW-resistant melon varieties and understanding plant-pathogen interactions.
Area of Science:
- Plant Pathology
- Genetics
- Horticultural Science
Background:
- Bacterial wilt (BW), caused by *Erwinia tracheiphila* (Et.), is a significant disease impacting melon (*Cucumis melo* L.) production.
- Limited availability of BW-resistant commercial melon varieties and lack of effective management strategies necessitate the identification of resistant sources.
- Current management relies on preventing pathogen spread, as infected plants typically succumb to the disease.
Purpose of the Study:
- To screen the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) melon collection for accessions exhibiting resistance to bacterial wilt.
- To identify potential genetic resources for breeding BW-resistant melon cultivars.
- To gain insights into the mechanisms underlying resistance to *Erwinia tracheiphila* in melon.
Main Methods:
- Evaluated 118 melon accessions through controlled inoculation trials with *Erwinia tracheiphila* (Et.).
- Assessed resistance by recording days to leaf wilting (DWIL), whole plant wilting (DWWP), and plant death (DDP).
- Utilized fluorescent microscopy to visualize bacterial colonization dynamics in resistant and susceptible melon tissues.
Main Results:
- Identified four melon accessions demonstrating high resistance to bacterial wilt based on DWIL, DWWP, and DDP parameters.
- Observed distinct host colonization patterns between resistant and susceptible melon lines when inoculated with GFP-labeled *E. tracheiphila*.
- Confirmed the efficacy of mechanical inoculation with *E. tracheiphila* strain Hca1-5N in controlled environments.
Conclusions:
- Four melon lines possess significant resistance to bacterial wilt, serving as crucial germplasm for future breeding programs.
- Understanding bacterial colonization in resistant lines provides insights into potential mechanisms of BW resistance in melons.
- This study lays the groundwork for developing durable resistance in melon against *Erwinia tracheiphila*.
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