PRODUCTION OF POTATO CYST NEMATODE HATCHING STIMULUS BY HAIRY ROOT CULTURES OF TOMATO

Hairy root clones of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) were obtained by inoculation of the stems of sterile plants with Agrobacterium rhizogenes. The transformed root cultures produced a potato cyst nematode hatching stimulus, which was detected both in the extract of the cultured roots and in th culture medium. The hatching stimulus was also produced by non-transformed tomato root cultures. Large portions of the hatching stimuli synthesized in the hairy and non-transformed roots were found to be released into the medium. Five independent clones of the tomato hairy root cultures displayed considerable variation in the production of stimulus.