Virus Transmission by Aphis gossypii Glover to Aphid-resistant and Susceptible Muskmelons

Abstract

The spread of watermelon mosaic virus by the melon aphid (Aphis gossypii Glover) was 31%, 74%, and 71% less to a melon aphid-resistant muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.) breeding line than to the susceptible recurrent parent in a field cage study. Aphid-resistant and susceptible plants served equally well as the virus source. The highest rate of infection (97.9%) was noted when target plants were all melon-aphid susceptible, least (26.7%) when the target plants were all melon-aphid resistant, and intermediate (69.4%) when the target plants were an equal mix of aphid-resistant and susceptible plants. The number of viruliferous aphids per plant required to cause a 50% infection varied from five to 20 on susceptible controls and from 60 to possibly more than 400 on a range of melon aphid-resistant populations. An F family from a cross of the melon aphid-resistant AR Topmark (AR TM) with the susceptible `PMR 45' had significantly less resistance to virus transmission than AR TM. Breeding line AR 5 (an aphid-resistant population with `PMR 5' as the recurrent parent) had significantly greater resistance to transmission than other aphid-resistant populations.