Development of an Efficient Bioassay Method to Evaluate Resistance of Chili Pepper Cultivars to Ralstonia solanacearum

Abstract

Bacterial wilt caused by Ralstonia solanacearum is an important disease in cultivation of chili pepper, causing plant death and significant yield losses. Cultivation of disease-resistant varieties is the most suitable measure to control bacterial wilt of chili pepper. To establish an efficient screening method for resistant chili pepper to R. solanacearum, six resistant or susceptible cultivars to the R. solanacearum were selected and the development of bacterial wilt on the cultivars according to several conditions was investigated. Drenching bacterial suspension into the cut roots using a scalpel was more simple and effective to distinguish resistant and susceptible cultivars than inoculation methods of root-dipping or soil-drenching without wounding. A resistant pepper, ’MC4’ to R. solanacearum showed high resistance under the developed conditions which were 21- to 28-day-old pepper inoculated with 1×10⁸ cfu/ml of bacterial suspension. On the other hands, the susceptible cultivars represented high disease severity under the conditions. These results indicated that we developed an efficient method to evaluate resistance of chili pepper cultivars against bacterial wilt. In addition, we successfully evaluated resistance degree of 140 commercial chili pepper cultivars to R. solanacearum using the developed method.

Keywords

• Bacterial wilt
• Breeding
• Capsicum annuum
• Disease resistance
• Inoculation method