Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, PR China.
Key Laboratory of Jilin Province for Zoonosis Prevention and Control, Institute of Military Veterinary Medicine, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun, Jilin Province, PR China; Jiangsu Co-innovation Center for Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonosis, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, PR China.
Genomics. 2022 Mar;114(2):110317. doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2022.110317. Epub 2022 Feb 19.
Ticks are a large group of blood-feeding arthropods that transmit multiple human and animal pathogens and are hence of importance to public health. The tick Haemaphysalis longicornis is associated with the transmission of multiple human pathogens in Asia, and recently found invading to the United States. Here, we report the sequencing, assembly and annotation of the 3.16 gigabase genome of this species, which is larger than the previous assembled one. The present Haemaphysalis longicornis genome was characterized by 6519 scaffolds, 24,189 protein-coding genes and a high proportion of simple sequence repeats (54.72%). By genomic assembly and comparative genomic analysis, we characterized the key genes that play essential roles in iron metabolism, detoxification, and freeze tolerance of H. longicornis. Furthermore, a total of 79 endogenous viral elements were identified within the genome, which might have had a considerable impact on its evolution. Decoding the H. longicornis genome not only provides insight into the genetic underpinnings of specific biological processes but also offers the basis for the subsequent integrated control of ticks and tick-borne diseases.
蜱是一种大型吸血节肢动物，可传播多种人类和动物病原体，因此对公共卫生具有重要意义。长角血蜱与亚洲多种人类病原体的传播有关，最近发现其已入侵美国。在这里，我们报告了该物种 31.6 千兆碱基基因组的测序、组装和注释，其大小大于以前组装的基因组。本研究的长角血蜱基因组由 6519 个支架、24189 个蛋白质编码基因和高比例的简单重复序列（54.72%）组成。通过基因组组装和比较基因组分析，我们对在铁代谢、解毒和长角血蜱耐冻结中起关键作用的基因进行了特征分析。此外，在基因组中总共鉴定出 79 种内源性病毒元件，这些元件可能对其进化产生了重大影响。解析长角血蜱的基因组不仅为特定生物学过程的遗传基础提供了深入了解，也为随后对蜱和蜱传疾病的综合控制提供了基础。
