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Updated: Sep 19, 2026

Building Double-decker Traps for Early Detection of Emerald Ash Borer
Published on: October 4, 2017
European ash pangenome reveals widespread structural variation and genetic basis of low ash dieback susceptibility
Daniel P Wood1, Mohammad Vatanparast2, Dario Galanti2
1Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, UK. d.wood@kew.org.
Abstract:
European Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) is a keystone tree species, whose populations are being decimated by ash dieback disease (ADB) - better characterisation of genetic variants associated with low susceptibility to the disease is needed. Here, we develop a F. excelsior pangenome to more fully capture sequence variability within this species compared with a linear reference genome, using a geographically diverse set of fifty F. excelsior samples. We identify 362,965 structural variants (SVs), including 174 Mb of sequence absent from the linear reference genome (22% of the linear reference size), and identify 3,412 high-confidence dispensable genes (those present only in some individuals). We use the pangenome to analyse existing genomic data from over 1,200 individuals, revealing 220 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) showing consistent allele frequency shifts between healthy individuals and those highly damaged by ADB, across UK seed sources, explicitly demonstrating the existence of a shared genetic component to low ADB susceptibility.
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