S. R. Nogueira

Nematodes Affecting Soybean and Sustainable Practices for Their Management

Plant‐parasitic nematodes are one of the limiting factors for soybean production world‐ wide. Overall, plant‐parasitic nematodes alone cause an estimated annual crop loss of

Population dynamics of the root lesion nematode, Pratylenchus brachyurus, in soybean fields in Tocantins State and its effect to soybean yield.

78 billion worldwide and an average crop yield loss of 10–15%. This imposes a chal‐ lenge to sustainable production of food worldwide, since there has been increasing demand for food supply and food security. Unsustainable cropping production systems with monocultures, intensive use of soils and expansion of crops to newly opened areas have intensified problems associated with new pests and diseases. Thus, finding and applying sustainable methods to control diseases associated with soybean are in cur‐ rent need. Over hundred nematode species, comprising fifty genera, have been reported in association with soybean. Of these, the root‐knot nematode Meloidogyne spp., cyst nematode Heterodera glycines, lesion nematode Pratylenchus brachyurus and the reniform nematode Rotylenchulus reniformis are major nematode species limiting soybean produc‐ tion. Here, we report an up‐to‐date literature review on the biology, symptoms, dam‐ age and control methods used for these nematodes species. Additionally, unusual and emergent nematode species affecting soybean are discussed.