Genome sequencing methods and assembly tools have improved dramatically
since the 2013 publication of draft genome assemblies for the mountain
pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins (Coleoptera:
Curculionidae). We conducted proximity ligation library sequencing and
scaffolding to improve contiguity, and then used linkage mapping and
recent bioinformatic tools for correction and further improvement. The
new assemblies have dramatically improved contiguity and gaps compared
to the originals: N50 values increased 26- to 36-fold, and the number of
gaps were reduced by half. Ninety percent of the content of the
assemblies is now contained in 12 and 11 scaffolds for the female and
male assemblies, respectively. Based on linkage mapping information, the
12 largest scaffolds in both assemblies represent all 11 autosomal
chromosomes and the neo-X chromosome. These assemblies now have nearly
chromosome-sized scaffolds and will be instrumental for studying genomic
architecture, chromosome evolution, population genomics, functional
genomics, and adaptation in this and other pest insects. We also
identified regions in two chromosomes, including the ancestral-X portion
of the neo-X chromosome, with elevated differentiation between northern
and southern Canadian populations.
Chromosome‐level genome assembly reveals genomic architecture of northern range expansion in the mountain pine beetle,
Dendroctonus ponderosae
Hopkins (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
