Silybum marianum cultivar:Silyking Genome sequencing

Milk thistle (Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn.) is an herb plant in the family Asteraceae and contains silymarin, known for its liver health benefits. Here, we present the first high-quality chromosome-level reference S. marianum genome assembled using Illumina, Oxford Nanopore, and Pore-C scaffolding technologies. The assembled genome was 694.36 Mb in length, with a contig N50 of 28.05 Mb and a scaffold N50 of 41.36 Mb. A total of 99.3% of the assembly was anchored to 17 chromosomes, and 53,552 protein-coding genes were identified. Deciphering the genome of milk thistle will allow us to better understand and utilize the benefits and mechanisms of this herb plant.