Chromosome-level genome assembly of oil-tea tree Camellia brevistyla

Camellia oleifera, belonging to the genus Camellia, is an important woody edible oil plant with high ecological and economic values. In this study, we assembled a chromosome-level genome of Camellia brevistyla that represents the closest diploid relative of polyploid C. oleifera based on current research. The genome size of the assembly was 3.10 Gb with a contig N50 size of 88.60 Mb. The BUSCO completeness score was estimated to be 98.88%, indicating high assembly completeness. A total of 2.29 Gb of the sequences were annotated as repetitive elements, accounting for 73.67% of the entire genome assembly. A total of 35,093 protein-coding genes were predicted, with the annotation completeness evaluated to be 97.03% via BUSCO analysis. In conclusion, the high-quality C. brevistyla genome is a pivotal genetic resource within the genus Camellia, which can serve as a vital diploid comparator for evolutionary and genomic studies in the more complex polyploid C. oleifera.