First report of Pratylenchus vulnus associated with apple in Tunisia

The root-lesion nematode of the genus Pratylenchus Filipjev (1936) has a worldwide distribution and cause severe production constraints on numerous important crops. In 2013-14, during a survey of the apple nurseries and orchards in center of Tunisia (Kairouan, Zaghouan, Monastir and Kasserine), 70 different roots and soil samples were collected. The populations of root-lesion nematode were identified on the basis of their morphological and morphometric characters, and by molecular methods. Microscopic observation of females and males demonstrated the occurrence of Pratylenchusd vulnus on apple trees. The ribosomal DNA D2-D3 expansion segments of the 28S rRNA and of the Pratylenchus populations were PCR amplified and sequenced. The sequences were compared with those of Pratylenchus species in the GenBank database with high similarity (99%). This comparison reconfirmed the morphological identifications. Phylogenetic studies placed those populations with P. vulnus. This is the first report of P. vulnus infecting apple in Tunisia.