ONT read assembly of the black rhino genome

The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is an endangered mammal for which a captive breeding program is part of the conservation effort. Black rhinos in zoo's often suffer from chronic infections and heamochromatosis. Furthermore, breeding is hampered by low male fertility. To aid a research project studying these topics, we sequenced and assembled the genome of a captive male black rhino using ONT sequencing data only.

This work produced over 100 Gb whole genome sequencing reads from whole blood. These were assembled into a 2.47 Gb draft genome consisting of 834 contigs with an N50 of 29.53 Mb. The genome annotation was lifted over from an available genome annotation for black rhino, which resulted in the retrieval of over 99% of gene features. This new genome assembly will be a valuable resource in for conservation genetic research in this species.