Assemblage du génome géant de l’écrevisse noble et évolution des génomes de décapodes

Crayfish are decapod crustaceans that play a decisive role in freshwater ecosystems, but many European species, particularly the noble crayfish Astacus astacus, are threatened by the crayfish plague. I took on the challenge of assembling the giant A. astacus genome (17 Gb) and obtained a preliminary genome of 21.8 Gb. This first European crayfish genome is one of the largest invertebrate genomes available. I also explored the evolution of decapod genomes. I was able to show the central contribution of repeated elements to the expansion and diversification of decapod genomes. A comparison of proteomes revealed a core-proteome of 7,000 proteins and the diversity of the evolutionary histories of their genes. My work paves the way for the sequencing and comparison of new crayfish genomes to identify markers of resistance to the plague and support strategies for reintroduction and sustainable aquaculture.