Subfamily Punctoderinae

Punctoderinae are cyst-forming nematodes that share the characteristsic of having a vulval circumfenestra. That is, a cuticular opening that develops in the terminal region of the mature cyst.

Females:

Vulval cone absent; vulva terminal or subterminal
Body of female round, ovoid or pear-shaped; forms a cyst.
Cuticle is reticulate, not striated the subcuticle with punctations.
Vulval slit very short, underbridge absent.
Bullae may be absent or present.
Perianal tubercles are absent.
Vulval region circumfenestrate.
Anus is also surrounded by a fenestra and is close to the ventral edge of the anal fenestra.

Juveniles

Stylet is shorter than 30 micrometers,
Esophageal glands fill the width of the body cavity
Phasmids have no lens-shaped structures.

These nematodes induce a syncytial feeding site in plant roots.

The group believed to have originated in North America and of ancient origin; it is the most northern of the heteroderids (Krall and Krall, 1978).

Ref: Subbotin et al.. (2017).

Taxonomic Background and Differentiation of Genera:

Genera:

Betulodera
Cactodera
Dolichodera
Globodera
Paradolichodera
Punctodera
Vittatidera

References

Behrens, E. (1975) Globodera Skarbilovic, 1959, eine selbstindige Gattung in der Unterfamilie Heteroderinae Skarbilovic, 1947 (Nematoda: Heteroderidae). Vortragstagung zu
aktuellen Problemen der Phytonematologie am 29/5/1975 in Rostock. Manuskriptdruck der Vortrage. Rostock, 1975, pp.12-26.

Ferris, H., E. P. Caswell-Chen, and R. L. Sloan. 1995. Synopsis of a developing database of the host status of plants to nematodes. Journal of Nematology 27:499-500.

Krall, E.L.., Krall, K.A. 1978. Revision of the plant nematodes of the family Heteroderidae on the basis of the trophic specialization of these parasites and their co-evolution with their host plants. Fitogel'mintologicheskie issledovaniya. 1978 pp.39-56

Luc, M., A. R. Maggenti, and R. Fortuner. 1988. A reappraisal of Tylenchina (Nemata). 9. The family Heteroderidae Filip’ev and Schuurmans Stekhoven, 1941. Revue de Nématologie 11:159-176.

Sasser, J. N., and D. W. Freckman. 1987. A world perspecive on Nematology: the role of the society. Pp. 7-14 in J. A. Veech and D. W. Dickson (eds). Vistas on Nematology. Society of Nematologists, Hyattsville, MD.

Schacht, H. 1859. Über einige Feinde der Rübenfelder. Zeit. Ver. Rubenzuckerindustrie Zolluer. 9:175-179.

Schmitt, D. P. and H. Ferris. 1998. Pathogenicity and damage levels. Pp 239-265 in S. B. Sharma (Ed.). The Cyst Nematodes. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht. 452p.

Subbotin, S.A., A. Vierstraete, P. De Ley, J. Rowe, L. Waeyenberge, M. Moens and J.R. Vanfleteren. 2001. Phylogenetic Relationships within the Cyst-Forming Nematodes (Nematoda, Heteroderidae) Based on Analysis of Sequences from the ITS Regions of Ribosomal DNA . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 21:1-16.

Subbotin, S.A., Jerry Akanwari, Chau N. Nguyen, Ignacio Cid del Prado Vera, John J. Chitambar, Renato N. Inserra and Vladimir N. Chizhov. 2017. Molecular characterisation and phylogenetic relationships of cystoid nematodes of the family Heteroderidae (Nematoda: Tylenchida). Nematology 19:1065-1081.

Tanha Maafi, Z., Sturhan, D., Handoo, Z., Mor, M., Moens, M., Subbotin, S.A. 2007. Morphological and molecular studies on Heterodera sacchari, H. goldeni and H. leuceilyma (Nematoda: Heteroderidae). Nematology 9: 483-497.

Wouts, W.M. 1985. Phylogenetic classification of the family Heteroderidae (Nematoda: Tylenchida). Systematic Parasitology 7,295-328.