Single-molecule sequencing of the Drosophila serrata genome

Long-read sequencing technology promises to greatly enhanceassembly of genomes for nonmodel species. Although the error rates of long reads have been a stumbling block, sequencing at high coverage permits the self-correction of many errors. Here, we sequence andassemble the genome of, a species from thesubgroup that has been well-studied for latitudinal clines, sexual selection, and gene expression, but which lacks a reference genome. Using 11 PacBio single-molecule real-time (SMRT cells), we generated 12 Gbp of raw sequence data comprising ∼65 × whole-genome coverage. Read lengths averaged 8940 bp (NRead50 12,200) with the longest read at 53 kbp. We self-corrected reads using the PBDagCon algorithm and assembled the genome using the MHAP algorithm within the PBcR assembler. Total genome length was 198 Mbp with an N50 just under 1 Mbp. Contigs displayed a high degree of chromosome arm-level conservation with thegenome and many could be sensibly placed on thephysical map. We also provide an initial annotation for this genome usinggene predictions that were supported by RNA-seq data