Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of two Asian bumble bees
The bumblebee Bombus patagiatus Nylander, 1848 and Bombus lantschouensis Vogt, 1908 (Hymenoptera: Apidae) are ecologically important bumble bee species native to East Asia, with considerable value for agricultural pollination and domestication. Despite their ecological and economic relevance, the lack of high-quality genomic resources has hindered in-depth investigations into their genetic architecture and evolutionary adaptations. Here, we present chromosome-level genome assemblies for both species, generated using a combination of PacBio HiFi long-read sequencing, Illumina short-read resequencing, and Hi-C scaffolding. The assembled genomes span 240.28 Mb (B. patagiatus) and 241.30 Mb (B. lantschouensis), with 94.38% and 94.00% of sequences anchored to 18 chromosomes, respectively. Genome annotation identified 17,351 and 16,023 protein-coding genes in B. patagiatus and B. lantschouensis, along with comprehensive repetitive element characterization. Both assemblies exhibit exceptional completeness, with BUSCO scores exceeding 99%, confirming their high quality and reliability. These genomic resources provide a critical foundation for future research on bumble bee evolution, population genetics, and the molecular basis of domestication traits.
Authors
- zhimin chang
- Zhuang Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9816-0699)
- Jin Ge (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8952-8191)
- Jixiang Cui (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-0461-6547)
- J. Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-0666-3282)
- Yuange Duan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2311-9859)
- Wanzhi Cai
- Hu Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5453-6084)
- Xinyang Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7159-3697)
- Li Tian
- Ye Xu
- Fan Song
- Yifan Zhai
- Cheng Sun
- Lixia Tian
- Wanhu Yang
Institutions
- Xinjiang Normal University (CN)
- Guizhou University (CN)
- Institute of Plant Protection (CN)
- Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CN)
- Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences (CN)
- Institute of Zoology (CN)
- China Agricultural University (CN)
- Capital Normal University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Scientific Data
- Published
- 2026-01-09
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-026-06568-x
- Primary Topic
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- China Agricultural University
- China National Tobacco Corporation