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Comparative Genomic Insights into the Longhorned Tick, Haemaphysalis Longicornis


 Background: The longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann, is widely distributed across temperate regions. It can parasitize terrestrial vertebrates, including birds and a large number of mammals. They are a concern in human and animal health notably for their potential to transmit infectious agents. Methods: Genome survey was investigated using GenomeScope v1.0.0 with a maximum k-mer coverage cutoff of 1,000. Non-redundant assembly was polished with Illumina short reads using two rounds of NextPolish v1.1.0. Genome completeness was assessed using BUSCO v3.0.2 pipeline analyses against arthropod gene set (n = 1, 066). Ab initio predictions were generated using BRAKER v2.1.5. Transcriptomic reads were mapped to the genome with HISAT2 v2.2.0 and assembled with StringTie v2.1.2. Gene functions were assigned against UniProtKB database using Diamond v0.9.24. Orthogroups of 16 Chelicerata species were inferred using OrthoFinder v2.3.8 and gene family evolution was estimated using CAFÉ v4.2.1. Gene families related to digestion and detoxification, i.e. cytochrome P450 (CYP), carboxyl/cholinesterase (CCE), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter were annotated by searching in the genome assembly. Results: The final genome assembly has a size of 3.12 Gb, a scaffold N50 of 1.09 Mb, and captured 92.4% of the BUSCO gene set (n=1,066). Genome architecture pattern of the longhorned tick resembles another tick, Ixodes scapularis (Say), particularly in large size, highly repetitive DNA (~65%) and protein-coding genes (21,550). We also identified 5,601 non-coding RNAs with a high ratio of tRNAs (4,271). Gene family evolution revealed 350 rapidly evolving gene families. Combining function enrichment analyses of gene ontology (GO) and KEGG pathway, 255 families experiencing significant expansions mainly involves in cuticle synthesis, digestion and detoxification. Conclusions: The new genome assembly, annotation and comparative genomic analyses provide a valuable resource for insights into parasitic life mode of the longhorned tick.