History of

Phytonematology
Nematology is the scientific
discipline concerned with the study
of nematodes, or roundworms.

Nematology as an independent
discipline has its recognizable
beginnings in the mid to late 19th
century.
History: pre-1850
 The earliest written account of a nematode
"sighting," as it were, may be found in the
Pentateuch of the Old Testament in the
Bible, in the Fourth Book of Moses called
Numbers: "And the Lord sent fiery
serpents among the people, and they bit
the people; and much people of Israel
died".
Circumstantial evidence suggests the "fiery
serpents" to be the Guinea worm,
Dracunculus medinensis, as this nematode
is known to inhabit the region near the Red
Sea.
 Borellus (1653) was the first to
observe and describe a free-living
nematode, which he dubbed the
"vinegar eel.
Tyson (1683) used a crude
microscope to describe the rough
anatomy of the human intestinal
roundworm, Ascaris lumbricoides.
 "Sowed cockle, reap'd no corn," a line by
William Shakespeare penned in 1594 in
Love's Labour's Lost, Act IV, Scene 3,
most certainly has reference to blighted
wheat caused by the plant parasite,
Anguina tritici
Needham (1743) solved the "riddle of
cockle" when he crushed one of the
diseased wheat grains and observed
"Aquatic Animals... denominated Worms,
Eels, or Serpents, which they very much
resemble."
History: 1850 to the
present
Berkeley (1855) observed vibrios
(Meloidogyne) from galls on the roots of
cucumbers in England.
However, the first specific mention of root-
knot nematodes was that of Cornu (1879),
who described Anguillula marioni (=
Meloidogyne sp.) the causal agent of galls
on the roots of Onobrychis sativa.
Kuhn (1857) found Anguillula dipsaci (=
Ditylenchus dipsaci) infecting the heads of
teasel, Dipsacus fullonum.
Schacht (1859) described the decline in
sugarbeet by cyst nematode, later named as
Heterodera schachtii by Schmidt in 1871.
Kuhn (1874) is thought to be the first to use
soil fumigation to control nematodes,
applying carbon disulfide treatments in
sugar beet fields in Germany.
Ritzema-Bos (1891) discovered the foliar
nematode, Aphelenchoides fragariae on
strawberry.
 In 1918, the first permanent nematology field station
was constructed in the U.S. Post Office in Salt Lake
City, Utah under the direction of Harry B. Shaw,
after scientists observed the sugar beet nematode in a
field south of the city.
Nathan A. Cobb (1918) Father of Nematology
published his Contributions to a Science of
Nematology and his lab manual "Estimating the
Nema Population of Soil" These two publications
provide definitive resources for many methods and
apparatus used in Nematology even to this day. Also
authored an excellent book: "Contribution to a
Science of Nematology".
Nathan Augustus Cobb (1859-1932)
 1941, Discovery of Potato Cyst Nematode
(Globodera rostochiensis)
Carter (1943) discovered DD (dichloropropane-
dichloropropene).
Christie (1945) discovered EDB (ethylene
dibromide).
Gotthold Steiner (1949) published "Plant
parasitic nematodes the growers should know"
is one of his good contribution.
Benjamin G. Chitwood had excellent works in
morphology of different groups of nematodes. His
outstanding works were presented in the book
"An Introduction to Nematology", 1950.
 1953, Discovery of Burrowing Nematode (Radopholus similis)
1955, Discovery of Lesion Nematode (Pratylenchus penetrans)
1956, First ever journal for plant parasitic nematodes,
Nematologica started in Europe.
Hewitt, Raski and Goheen (1958) first reported of transmission
of virus by nematodes (Xiphinema index transmitting fanleaf
grapevine virus in grapevine) in the USA.
Jesse R. Christie, (1959) and Perry were the first to prove that
Trichidorus spp. are plant parasites and also wrote an excellent
book "Plant Nematodes, their Bionomics and Control
Gerald Thorne has many contributions to the science of
nematology, especially on nematodes in the order Tylenchida,
Dorylaimida and Rhabditida. His book
"Principles of Nematology" (1961) is an outstanding
contribution.
Albert L. Taylor with J. N. Sasser (1978) wrote a book entitled
"Biology, Identification and Control of Root-knot Nematodes
History of Nematology in India
 1901 Barber reported root knot nematode on tea in Devala Estate,
Tamil Nadu, South India.
1906 Butler reported root knot nematode on black pepper in Kerala.
1913, 1919 Butler reported Ufra disease on rice in Bengal due to the
infestation of Ditylenchus angustus.
1926, 1933 Ayyar reported root knot nematode infestation on
vegetable and other crops in India.
1934, 1936 Dastur reported white tip disease of rice caused by
Aphelenchoides besseyi in Central India.
1959 Prasad, Mathur and Sehgal reported cereal cyst nematode for
the first time from India.
1961 Nematology Laboratory established at Agricultural College and
Research Institute, Coimbatore, with the assistance of Rockfeller
Foundation and Indian Council of Agricultural Research.
1961 Nematology Unit established at the Central Potato Research
Institute, Shimla.
 1963 Laboratory for potato cyst nematode research established at
Uthagamandalam with the assistance of Indian Council of Agriculture
Research
1964 First International Nematology course held at IARI., NEW Delhi.
1966 Nair, Dass and Menon reported the burrowing nematode on
banana for the first time from Kerala.
1966 Division of Nematology established at IARI, New Delhi
1968 First South East Asian Post Graduate Nematology course
held in India.
1969 Nematological Society of India founded and first All India
Nematology Symposium held at IARI, New Delhi.
1969 1970 Third South East Asian Nematology course conducted
at New Delhi.
1971 Indian Journal of Nematology published