ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR) in Lucknow has successfully decoded and assembled the complete genome of the Indian major carp, Cirrhinus mrigala, commonly known as mrigal. This species plays a vital role in India’s aquaculture sector, particularly in carp-dominated systems, where it is one of the top three species in terms of importance.
The fully sequenced genome, spanning 1.057 Gb, consists of 940 scaffolds with an N50 of 37.32 Mb. The genome’s completeness was confirmed at 98% using BUSCO benchmarking. A total of 39,091 genes were annotated, including 8,428 hypothetical and 1,688 uncharacterized genes. The study also uncovered 38 Hox genes spread across seven gene clusters. These findings have been published in Scientific Data, a journal of the Nature group.
This genomic information opens new doors for identifying genes and variants linked to key economic traits in mrigal, enabling the implementation of genomic selection in aquaculture. Such advancements are expected to significantly enhance the genetic improvement of farmed fish, promoting sustainable production.
The Genome Sequencing Project was led by Dr. Vindhya Mohindra and supported by the ICAR-Consortium Research Platform on Genomics, with coordination from Dr. Joykrushna Jena, Deputy Director General (Fisheries Science), ICAR.
Source: ICAR-NBFGR
