Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of Pterygoplichthys pardalis

Suckermouth catfishes, with their evolved powerful features, have become
notorious invasive species, causing significant damage to aquatic
ecosystems. However, the lack of high-quality genomes severely restricts
research on this group within the field. In this study, we de
novo  assembled the chromosome-level genome assembly of
Pterygoplichthys pardalis using multiple platforms of sequencing data,
including Illumina short reads, Nanopore long reads, and Hi-C sequencing
reads, resulting in a 1.51 Gb genome assembly. Multiple evaluations,
including read mapping ratio (98.52%), transcript mapping ratio (99.61%),
conserved BUSCO gene set (98.8%), and N50 score (49.47 Mb), indicated the
high continuity and accuracy of the genome assembly we generated. Genome
annotation found that 0.97 Gb of genome sequences are repetitive
sequences, accounting for 64.47% of the genome assembly. Further, 23,859
protein-coding genes were successfully predicted, 92.92% of which could be
annotated in functional databases. This high-quality genome assembly
of P. pardalis provides a valuable resource for understanding the
genetic underpinnings of P. pardalis's invasive success and offers
critical data for future fisheries research and management.