A Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly of Garlic (Allium sativum) Provides Insights into Genome Evolution and Allicin Biosynthesis

• DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2020.07.019
• Publication Date: 2020-07-28T02:06:16Z
• Authors: Xiudong Sun; Siyuan Zhu; Ningyang Li; Yi Cheng; Jing Zhao; Xuguang Qiao; Li Lu; Shiqi Liu; Yanzhou Wang; Chan Liu; Benping Li; Wu Guo; Shuang Gao; Zemao Yang; Fu Li; Zheng Zeng; Qing Tang; Yupeng Pan; Mengjiao Guan; Jian Zhao; Xiaoming Lu; Huanwen Meng; Zhenlin Han; Chunsheng Gao; Wenkai Jiang; Xing Zhao; Shilin Tian; Jianguang Su; Zhihui Cheng; Touming Liu
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; 03 medical and health sciences; DNA Transposable Elements; Disulfides; Garlic; Sulfinic Acids; Transcriptome; Genome, Plant

Garlic, an economically important vegetable, spice, and medicinal crop, produces highly enlarged bulbs and unique organosulfur compounds. Here, we report a chromosome-level genome assembly for garlic, with a total size of approximately 16.24 Gb, as well as the annotation of 57 561 predicted protein-coding genes, making garlic the first Allium species with a sequenced genome. Analysis of this garlic genome assembly reveals a recent burst of transposable elements, explaining the substantial expansion of the garlic genome. We examined the evolution of certain genes associated with the biosynthesis of allicin and inulin neoseries-type fructans, and provided new insights into the biosynthesis of these two compounds. Furthermore, a large-scale transcriptome was produced to characterize the expression patterns of garlic genes in different tissues and at various growth stages of enlarged bulbs. The reference genome and large-scale transcriptome data generated in this study provide valuable new resources for research on garlic biology and breeding.