Background/Objective.

The production of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is affected by the nematodes Rotylenchulus reniformis and Meloidogyne enterolobii; however, the interaction between these two nematodes on these plant species is unknown. The aim of this study was to determine the interaction of R. reniformis and M. enterolobii in tomato and cucumber plants through artificial inoculations under greenhouse conditions.

Materials and Methods.

Twenty-one-day-old seedlings were inoculated with 2000 juveniles (J2) of each nematode per plant. The experiment followed a completely randomized three-factor design with six treatments: T1= R. reniformis; T2= M. enterolobii; T3= R. reniformis was inoculated and 15 days later M. enterolobii was added; T4 = M. enterolobii was inoculated and 15 days later R. reniformis was added; T5 = both species were inoculated on the same day; T6 = uninoculated control. The reproduction factor (RF) of both nematodes, galling index for M. enterolobii, and root necrosis percentage for R. reniformis were recorded at 30 and 50 days after inoculation.

Results.

In cucumber plants, M. enterolobii reduced its reproduction by up to 73% in the presence of R. reniformis, while in tomato plants, its reproduction decreased by 52%, with a reduction in the galling index of 72 and 60% in cucumber and tomato plants, respectively, compared to T1 and T2. On the other hand, R. reniformis reduced its reproduction by 72% in cucumber plants and 67% in tomato plants in the presence of M. enterolobii, and a reduction in symptom severity was observed by 78 and 77% in cucumber and tomato plants, respectively, compared to T1 and T2.

Conclusion.

In treatments where one species was inoculated before the other, the species inoculated first showed a higher RF and caused greater disease severity. In simultaneous co-inoculations, both nematodes reduced their RF and caused lower symptom severity in tomato and cucumber plants.

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