Establishing gene models from the Pinus pinaster genome using gene capture and BAC sequencing

Background In the era of DNA throughput sequencing, assembling and understanding gymnosperm mega-genomes remains a challenge. Although drafts of three conifer genomes have recently been published, this number is too low to understand the full complexity of conifer genomes. Using techniques focused on specific genes, gene models can be established that can aid in the assembly of gene-rich regions, and this information can be used to compare genomes and understand functional evolution. Results In this study, gene capture technology combined with BAC isolation and sequencing was used as an experimental approach to establish de novo gene structures without a reference genome. Probes were design…