Molecular Characterization and Phylogeny of Ditylenchus weischeri from Cirsium arvense in the Prairie Provinces of Canada

Ditylenchus weischeri that parasitizes the weed Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop., 1772, (creeping thistle) was described in 2011 from Russia based on their morphology, ITS-RFLP analysis, and Hsp90 gene sequence of a few individuals and one field collection of the plant. More recently, we found C. arvense parasitized by D. weischeri in the Prairie Provinces of Canada. Plant host preference for D. weischeri was also distinct from D. dipsaci (Kühn) Filipjev, 1936. In the current study, a comprehensive molecular analysis of many D. weischeri specimens from Canada is presented. Individuals from 41C. arvense or yellow pea grain samples with seeds of C. arvense from the Prairie Provinces were sequenced for the internal transcribed spacer (ITS rDNA), large subunit (LSU) D2D3 28S rDNA, partial segment of small subunit (SSU) 18S rDNA, and the heat shock protein Hsp90 gene. The analysis also included D. weischeri individuals from C. arvense from Russia and garlic with D. dipsaci from the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec in Canada. Available sequence data of Ditylenchus species retrieved from GenBank were used to phylogenetically position this species within the genus Ditylenchus. In all studied genes, several single-nucleotide polymorphisms between the Canadian D. weischeri and both Russian haplotype and individuals of D. weischeri from C. arvense from Russia were found. The sequences of ITS rDNA, LSU D2D3 28S rDNA, and Hsp90 were used to construct separate dendrograms. For each of the three genes examined, D. weischeri was grouped separately from the other Ditylenchus. Ditylenchus samples from C. arvense was positioned to a single clade such as D. weischeri and distinct from D. dipsaci. With past reports of plant host preference and morphology, the results of this study provide further evidence for the fact that D. weischeri is distinct to be separated from D. dipsaci. Furthermore, minor differences in molecular divergence and morphology to the Russian haplotype and limited symptoms of disease on C. arvense in Prairie Canada suggest the Canadian and Russian populations of D. weischeri may be diverging.