Data from: Long read reference genome-free reconstruction of a full-length transcriptome from Astragalus membranaceus reveals transcript variants involved in bioactive compound biosynthesis

Astragalus membranaceus, also known as Huangqi in China, is one of the
most widely used medicinal herbs in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Traditional Chinese Medicine formulations from Astragalus membranaceus
have been used to treat a wide range of illnesses, such as cardiovascular
disease, type 2 diabetes, nephritis and cancers. Pharmacological studies
have shown that immunomodulating, anti-hyperglycemic, anti-inflammatory,
antioxidant and antiviral activities exist in the extract of Astragalus
membranaceus. Therefore, characterising the biosynthesis of bioactive
compounds in Astragalus membranaceus, such as Astragalosides, Calycosin
and Calycosin-7-O-β-D-glucoside, is of particular importance for further
genetic studies of Astragalus membranaceus. In this study, we
reconstructed the Astragalus membranaceus full-length transcriptomes from
leaf and root tissues using PacBio Iso-Seq long reads. We identified 27
975 and 22 343 full-length unique transcript models in each tissue
respectively. Compared with previous studies that used short read
sequencing, our reconstructed transcripts are longer, and are more likely
to be full-length and include numerous transcript variants. Moreover, we
also re-characterised and identified potential transcript variants of
genes involved in Astragalosides, Calycosin and
Calycosin-7-O-β-D-glucoside biosynthesis. In conclusion, our study
provides a practical pipeline to characterise the full-length
transcriptome for species without a reference genome and a useful genomic
resource for exploring the biosynthesis of active compounds in Astragalus
membranaceus.