Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative Report 11:50-51 (article 21) 1988
M. Pitrat, C. Maestro, C. Ferriere, M. Ricard
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, BP 94, 84140, Montfavet, France
J. Alvarez
Servicio de Investigcion Agraria, D.G.A. Apartado 727, 50080, Zaragoza, Spain
Resistance to the melon aphid Aphis gossypii has been described i muskmelon lines from India and from Far East (2, 3).
A single dominant gene symbolized by Vat (Virus Aphid transmission resistance) (1, 5) controls the resistance to colonization of melon by A. gossypii by non-acceptance and antibiosis mechanisms and resistance to viruses transmission by this aphid (4).
We report here the discovery of a resistance to the melon aphid in some cultivars of melon from Spain. The inheritance of this resistance is analyzed.
The study of a collection of 72 melon landraces from the Spanish Horticultural Germplasm bank has shown the existence of resistance to A. gossypii in 3 accessions. ‘Ariso’ from Ibiza is early maturing with orange flesh; ‘Invernizo’ from Malaga is very late, in the ‘Tendral’ type (dark green skin, white flesh oval, fruit weight about 3,5 kg); ‘Escrito’ from Murcia is early with green-yellow skin, orange flesh, oval, fruit weight is about 2 kg.
The resistant plants from the spanish lots were selfed and their progenies tested and crossed with ‘Vedrantais’ (susceptible) and ‘Margot’ (resistant ‘Cantaloup Charantais’ lines with the Vat gene). The plant resistance was tested by non-acceptance assay (2).
According to the results in F1 and F2 progenies for ‘Ariso’ x ‘Vedrantais’ (Table 1), a single dominant gene controls this resistance. Results of the ‘Ariso’ x ‘Margot’ progenies indicate that resistance in ‘Ariso’ is controlled by the same gene (Vat) than in ‘Margot.
In ‘Invernizo’, resistance is not very clear cut and there are often more adult aphids remaining on the plants and more larvae than in ‘Margot’. But in the F2 ‘Invernizo’ x ‘Margot’ we found no really susceptible plants (as Vedrantais’). We conclude that ‘Invernizo’ carries the Vat gene but that the expression of the gene is not very good in this cultivar type. And so in the F2 ‘Invernizo’ x ‘Vedrantais’ we may have underestimated the number of resistant plants which gives a ratio resistant : susceptible different from 3:1.
Resistance to viruses transmission by A. gossypii has been studied. ‘Ariso’, ‘Invernizo’ and ‘Escrito’ are all resistant to Watermelon Mosaic Virus 2 and Zucchini Yellow Mosaic Virus transmission.
Table 1. Results for the behavior to Aphis gossypii after non acceptance tests in 3 different spanish muskmelons cultivars and the F1 and F2 with ‘Vedrantais’ (aphid suscept9ible) and ‘Margot’ (aphid resistant)
Resistant |
Susceptible |
chi square |
|||
value |
probability |
||||
| Ariso | 148 | 0 | |||
| F1 Ariso x Vedrantais | 20 | 0 | |||
| F2 (Ariso x Vedrantais) (+) | 234 | 66 | 3:1 | 1.44 | 23% |
| F1 Ariso x Margot | 36 | 0 | |||
| F2 (Ariso x Margot) (+) | 201 | 0 | 15 : 1 | 13.4 | <0.1% |
| Invernizo | 30 | 0 | |||
| F1 Invernizo x Vedrantais | 10 | 0 | |||
| F2 Invernizo x Vedrantais (+) | 193 | 110 | 3 : 1 | 20.65 | <0.1% |
| F1 Invernizo x Margot | 20 | 0 | |||
| F2 (Invernizo x Margot ) (+) | 280 | 0 | 15 : 1 | 13.87 | <0.1% |
| Escrito | 139 | 0 | |||
Literature Cited
- Cucurbit Genetics Cooperative. Gene List Committee. 1986. Gene list for muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.). Cucurbit Genetics Coop. Rpt., 99:111-120.
- Lecoq, H., S. Cohen, M. Pitrat, G. Labonne. 1979. Resistance to Cucumber Mosaic Virus transmission by aphids in cucumis melo. Phytopathology 69:1223-1225.
- Pitrat, M., H. Lecoq. 1980. Inheritance of resistance to Cucumber Mosaic virus transmission by Aphis gossypii in Cucumis melo. Phytopathology 70:958-961.
- Pitrat,M. H. Lecoq. 1982. Relations genetiques entre les resistances par non acceptation et par antibioose du melon a Aphis gossypoii. Recherche de liasons avec d’autres genes. Agronomie 2:503-508.
- Pitrat, M., H. Lecoq, and G. Risse. 1982. Vat and Fn, two linkd genes in muskmelon. Cucurbit Genetics Coop. Rpt. 5:29-30.