Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of the gynogenetic large-scale loach (Paramisgurnus dabryanus)

The large-scale loach (Paramisgurnus dabryanus; Cypriniformes: Cobitidae) is primarily distributed in East Asia. It is an important economic fish species characterized by fast growth, temperature-dependent sex determination and the ability to breathe air. Currently, molecular mechanism studies related to some aspects such as sex determination, toxicology, feed nutrition, growth and genetic evolution have been conducted. However, the lack of a high-quality reference genome has hindered further research. In this study, we performed PacBio HiFi and Hi-C sequencing on a female (ZW) specimen and assembled the first high-quality chromosome-level genome of the large-scale loach. The assembled genome comprises 24 chromosomes, with a total length of 1.04 Gb, a scaffold N50 of 41.7 Mb, and a BUSCO completeness of 95.8%, including 28,311 protein-coding genes. These findings not only provide new insights into the genome structure of the large-scale loach but also establish a crucial reference point for omics studies and serve as an essential genomic resource for breeding programs in this species.