Reference genome of Calochortus tolmiei Hook. & Arn. (Liliaceae), a cat's ear mariposa lily.

Abstract

Calochortus tolmiei Hook. & Arn., a bulbous monocot with cat's ear flowers in the angiosperm family Liliaceae, is a perennial herb native to northern California, Oregon, and Washington. Calochortus exhibits substantial morphological and karyotype diversity with multiple floral forms and a haploid chromosome number varying from six to 10. Here, we present the first high-quality reference assembly in Liliaceae for C. tolmiei, with a scaffolded assembly of 2.9 Gbp with a N50 of 296 Mbp. Notably, 92% of the assembled genome is scaffolded into 10 pseudomolecules, matching the documented chromosome count of C. tolmiei. The genome contains 31,049 protein-coding genes, with 86.2% being functionally annotated. The closest reference-quality genome assembly to C. tolmiei is from Chionographis japonica (Willd.) Maxim. (Melianthiaceae), which diverged approximately 83 MYA, providing a valuable genomic resource in the Liliales, an order which lacks genomic resources.