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  1. Koepfli, Klaus-Peter (Ed.)
    Abstract Bison are an icon of the American West and an ecologically, commercially, and culturally important species. Despite numbering in the hundreds of thousands today, conservation concerns remain for the species, including the impact on genetic diversity of a severe bottleneck around the turn of the 20th century and genetic introgression from domestic cattle. Genetic diversity and admixture are best evaluated at genome-wide scale, for which a high-quality reference is necessary. Here, we use trio binning of long reads from a bison–Simmental cattle (Bos taurus taurus) male F1 hybrid to sequence and assemble the genome of the American plains bison (Bison bison bison). The male haplotype genome is chromosome-scale, with a total length of 2.65 Gb across 775 scaffolds (839 contigs) and a scaffold N50 of 87.8 Mb. Our bison genome is ~13× more contiguous overall and ~3400× more contiguous at the contig level than the current bison reference genome. The bison genome sequence presented here (ARS-UCSC_bison1.0) will enable new research into the evolutionary history of this iconic megafauna species and provide a new tool for the management of bison populations in federal and commercial herds. 
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  2. Koepfli, Klaus-Peter (Ed.)
    Abstract Genomics research has relied principally on the establishment and curation of a reference genome for the species. However, it is increasingly recognized that a single reference genome cannot fully describe the extent of genetic variation within many widely distributed species. Pangenome representations are based on high-quality genome assemblies of multiple individuals and intended to represent the broadest possible diversity within a species. A Bovine Pangenome Consortium (BPC) has recently been established to begin assembling genomes from more than 600 recognized breeds of cattle, together with other related species to provide information on ancestral alleles and haplotypes. Previously reported de novo genome assemblies for Angus, Brahman, Hereford, and Highland breeds of cattle are part of the initial BPC effort. The present report describes a complete single haplotype assembly at chromosome-scale for a fullblood Simmental cow from an F1 bison–cattle hybrid fetus by trio binning. Simmental cattle, also known as Fleckvieh due to their red and white spots, originated in central Europe in the 1830s as a triple-purpose breed selected for draught, meat, and dairy production. There are over 50 million Simmental cattle in the world, known today for their fast growth and beef yields. This assembly (ARS_Simm1.0) is similar in length to the other bovine assemblies at 2.86 Gb, with a scaffold N50 of 102 Mb (max scaffold 156.8 Mb) and meets or exceeds the continuity of the best Bos taurus reference assemblies to date. 
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  3. Abstract Background The development of trio binning as an approach for assembling diploid genomes has enabled the creation of fully haplotype-resolved reference genomes. Unlike other methods of assembly for diploid genomes, this approach is enhanced, rather than hindered, by the heterozygosity of the individual sequenced. To maximize heterozygosity and simultaneously assemble reference genomes for 2 species, we applied trio binning to an interspecies F1 hybrid of yak (Bos grunniens) and cattle (Bos taurus), 2 species that diverged nearly 5 million years ago. The genomes of both of these species are composed of acrocentric autosomes. Results We produced the most continuous haplotype-resolved assemblies for a diploid animal yet reported. Both the maternal (yak) and paternal (cattle) assemblies have the largest 2 chromosomes in single haplotigs, and more than one-third of the autosomes similarly lack gaps. The maximum length haplotig produced was 153 Mb without any scaffolding or gap-filling steps and represents the longest haplotig reported for any species. The assemblies are also more complete and accurate than those reported for most other vertebrates, with 97% of mammalian universal single-copy orthologs present. Conclusions The high heterozygosity inherent to interspecies crosses maximizes the effectiveness of the trio binning method. The interspecies trio binning approach we describe is likely to provide the highest-quality assemblies for any pair of species that can interbreed to produce hybrid offspring that develop to sufficient cell numbers for DNA extraction. 
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