The draft genome sequences of the cosmopolitan centric diatom, the genus Skeletonema

The genus Skeletonema stands out as one of the most prevalent and globally distributed diatoms within coastal marine ecosystems. Additionally, it holds significance as a pivotal organism across diverse research domains, encompassing biochemistry, ecophysiology, molecular biology, ecology, oceanography, and aquaculture. This study presents the draft genome assemblies and annotations of 11 strains in 9 Skeletonema species. We generated approximately 13.2-45.4 Gbp (DNA) and 6.0-15.4 Gbp (RNA) of sequencing data and produced draft haploid genomes with total lengths of 40.3-69.3 Mbp and N50 scaffold sizes of 0.35-1.09 Mbp containing 90-98% of orthologs conserved in Stramenopiles. We also identified 5.1-28.4 Mbp (11.0-41.1% of the draft genomes) of repetitive genome sequences and a total number of 15,275-21,376 protein-coding genes. The draft genomes of Skeletonema will facilitate further study, such as population dynamics, phylogeography, the process of speciation, and the evolution of gene function, and help to provide deep insight into the cosmopolitanism of this most successfully prosperous genus.