The draft genome of the Wisconsin Miniature SwineTM, a valuable biomedical research tool.

Abstract

Porcine biomedical models have emerged as valuable tools in biomedical research due to their physiological, anatomical, metabolic, immunological, and genetic similarities to humans. As a result, they offer greater relevance for translational studies than rodent models. Moreover, compared to nonhuman primates, porcine models are more cost-effective, easier to manipulate genetically, and raise fewer ethical concerns. However, the conventional breeds of swine most commonly used in research have rapid growth rates, which lead to logistical challenges such as increased space requirements, making them impractical as biomedical models. The Wisconsin Miniature SwineTM (WMSTM) was developed to address these shortcomings. The WMSTM porcine model grows slower, reaching and maintaining human sizes at adulthood. The model was also specifically designed to possess more human-like physiology that allows for easy modeling of comorbidities like obesity and metabolic syndrome that affect a large portion of the human population affected by chronic diseases. Thus, WMS™ is an ideal porcine gene editing platform for modeling complex multifactorial diseases. Here, we present the first draft genome assembly representative of the WMSTM line. The primary assembly was generated with ∼20× coverage of long reads from Oxford Nanopore Technologies and independently error-corrected using 23× Pacific Biosciences reads. Arima Genomics Hi-C data were used to improve contiguity. Largely congruent with the existing Sus scrofa genome, we also show the utility of WMSTM as a model through comparisons between 2 WMSTM genes and human homologs. Finally, we show the utility of genotyping by sequencing across WMSTM herds. The WMSTM genome generated here is highly complete and supports investigators utilizing WMSTM in biomedical research.