Ophiocordyceps sinensis Genome sequencing and assembly. Ophiocordyceps sinensis

The Chinese caterpillar fungus, Ophiocordyceps sinensis, is one of the most important and prominent traditional Chinese medicinal fungi that inhabits harsh environments of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) with an average altitude of over 4,000 m. In this study, we integrate the advantages of both two sequencing technologies, including Roche 454 and Illumina Hiseq2000, to present the high-quality reference genome sequence of O. sinensis using a heterozygous assembly strategy. Together with the data analyses from re-sequencing samples of the 31 representative natural populations, comprehensive transcriptomic surveys of the three major developmental stages and comparative genomic analyses with C. militaris, we aim to obtain new insights into molecular mechanisms of fungal pathogenicity, mating system evolution of the fungal species and the adaptation to living at high altitudes on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.