Nematicidal activity of Auxarthron reticulatum DY-2 against the pine wood nematode Bursaphelenchus mucronatus

Summary – Auxarthron reticulatum DY-2 was isolated from field soils in Jeonnam Province, South Korea, and its culture filtrate was active as a bionematicide agent against the pine wood nematode Bursaphelenchus mucronatus. The nematicidal activity against B. mucronatus was proportional to the concentration of the culture filtrate. The nematicidal compounds, dimethyl fumarate and bis(2ethylhexyl)phthalate, were isolated and identified from A. reticulatum DY-2 culture filtrate using silica gel column chromatography combined with high performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The bioassays on nematicidal activity revealed that bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate and dimethyl fumarate at 1% concentration resulted in 70 and 100% mortality of B. mucronatus, respectively, after 48 h exposure. This is the first report that these two compounds exhibit a property of nematicidal activity, especially on Bursaphelenchus spp.