Genome sequencing and assembly of Indian major carp, Cirrhinus mrigala (Hamilton, 1822)

The freshwater aquaculture species, Cirrhinus mrigala, commonly known as mrigal, holds significance in the carp-dominated aquaculture system, globally. Despite constituting 1.08% of the total freshwater aquaculture production, mrigal is the third most important Indian major carp. However, its genome and associated information is not available. This study aims to address this gap by generation high quality genome assembly using PacBio long reads, Illumina short reads and Hi-C scaffolding. The characterization of assembled highly contiguous genome, 1.057 Gb in size, revealed 39,091 genes with functional annotations. The orthology analysis based on direct orthologs and single copy ortholgs places C. mrigala in a distinct position within the Otophysi clade. Additionally, the study delves into Hox gene clusters, identifying 38 Hox genes distributed in seven clusters. The present genomic information offers potential applications for sustainable aquaculture management, including selection programs for economic traits.