Impact of different Meloidogyne species on the development of sugarcane plants

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of Meloidogyne javanica, Meloidogyne incognita, and Meloidogyne arenaria on different aspects of the development of sugarcane plants under greenhouse conditions. For this purpose, seedlings of the RB867515 genotype were individually inoculated with 5,000 eggs + second-stage juveniles of their respective nematodes/plant, and non-inoculated plants were used as control. After 330 days of inoculation, the plants were removed from the pots, and the following characteristics were evaluated: fresh mass of the aerial part and root system; leaf area; leaf chlorophyll index; culm diameter; fresh mass of culms; broth volume; contents of neutral and acid detergent fiber, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, apparent sucrose in broth, and reducing sugars in broth; total soluble solids concentration. Subsequently, the final population of nematodes in the root system of inoculated plants was determined to calculate the reproduction factor of nematodes. The results showed that all tested Meloidogyne species negatively affected plant development and the composition of some analyzed fractions, in comparison to the non-inoculated control. However, the presence of the root-knot nematode in sugarcane plants increased the contents of neutral and acid detergent fiber, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, and reducing sugars, regardless of the Meloidogyne species.