Advancing to Chromosome-Scale Genome Assembly of a Cunninghamella blakesleeana Strain: A Potential Biocontrol Agent of Cupuaçu Tree Witches’ Broom Disease
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Here, we present the first complete chromosome-scale genome assembly of the Brazilian Cunninghamella blakesleeana strain UFAC-CB2.1. We combined Nanopore long reads with high-quality Illumina paired-end reads to produce a final assembly comprising eight chromosomes (seven nuclear and one mitochondrial), totaling 33,158,829 bp. Ab initio gene prediction identified 10,659 protein-coding genes. We also predicted the secretome and effectorome, detecting at least 609 secreted proteins and 432 candidate secreted effector proteins. This telomere-to-telomere genome assembly of a poorly investigated fungus will shed light on the genetics of the species and genus, opening opportunities for further research in agricultural, biotechnological, and medical applications. Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .
Source: PhytoFrontiers™
Institutions: Universidade Federal do Acre, Universidade de São Paulo
Language: English
Subfield: Plant Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDG: Zero hunger
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7202031285