Solanum torvum responses to the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita.

Background: Solanum torvum Sw is worldwide employed as rootstock for eggplant cultivation because of its vigour and resistance/tolerance to the most serious soil-borne diseases as bacterial, fungal wilts and root-knot nematodes. The little information on Solanum torvum (hereafter Torvum) resistance mechanisms, is mostly attributable to the lack of genomic tools (e.g.

Low cryoprotectant concentrations and fast cooling for nematode cryostorage.

Cryopreservation protocols based on slow freezing or vitrification often result in cell injury due to ice formation, cell dehydration and/or toxic concentrations of cryoprotectant (CPA). In this study, we present a cryopreservation technique based on low, non-toxic concentrations of cryoprotectants (≈ 2-4M) combined with a rapid cooling rate in the liquid nitrogen phase (-196°C). Protocols for successfully cryopreserving the plant parasitic nematodes Globodera tabacum tabacum, Heterodera schachtii and Meloidogyne incognita were developed, as demonstrated by the high survival rates and reproducibility of cyst and root-knot nematode species post-cryostorage.