AUTHOR=Su Rui , Qiao Xian , Gao Yun , Li Xiaokai , Jiang Wei , Chen Wei , Fan Yixing , Zheng Bingwu , Zhang Yanjun , Liu Zhihong , Wang Ruijun , Wang Zhiying , Wang Zhixin , Wan Wenting , Dong Yang , Li Jinquan 

TITLE=Draft Genome of the European Mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon)

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Genetics

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/genetics/articles/10.3389/fgene.2020.533611

DOI=10.3389/fgene.2020.533611

ISSN=1664-8021

ABSTRACT=<p>Mouflon (<italic>Ovis orientalis</italic>) with its huge and beautiful horns is considered as one of the ancestors of domesticated sheep. The European mouflon (<italic>Ovis orientalis musimon</italic>) is in the Asiatic mouflon (<italic>O. orientalis</italic>) clade. In order to provide novel genome information for mouflon, moreover promote genetic analysis of genus <italic>Ovis</italic> both domestic and wild, we propose to sequence the mouflon genome. We assembled the highly heterozygous mouflon genome based on Illumina HiSeq platform using the next-generation sequencing technology. Finally, the draft genome we accessed approximately 2.69 Gb (42.15% GC), while N50 sizes of contig and scaffold are 110.1 kb and 10.4 Mb, respectively. The contiguity of this assembly is obviously better than earlier versions. Further analyses predicted 20,814 protein-coding genes in the mouflon genome and 12,390 shared gene families among bovine species. It is estimated that the divergence time between <italic>O. orientalis musimon</italic> and <italic>Ovis aries</italic> was 7.6 million years ago. The draft mouflon genome assembly will provide data support and theoretical basis for various investigations of the genus <italic>Ovis</italic> species in future.</p>