The striped venus clam Chamelea gallina is a benthic bivalve relevant for the blue economy of the Adriatic Sea and the European fishery sector. However, the limited genomic resources available for this bivalve hinder the understanding of its biology, adaptability to climate change, and responses to stress factors. Here, we report the first chromosome-level genome assembly of C. gallina. Leveraging a combination of PacBio HiFi, and Illumina sequencing, complemented by Hi-C scaffolding, we generated a 1.81 Gb genome assembly with a scaffold N50 of 100.3 Mb and BUSCO completeness of 95.6%. The final assembly comprises 19 scaffolds matching the species' karyotype, demonstrating high contiguity and structural accuracy. Genome annotation identified 58,203 protein-coding genes, and repetitive regions for 54.40% of the genome. We also assembled the complete mitochondrial genome and confirmed the species identity through phylogenetic analysis. This genomic resource sets the stage for comparative analyses within the genus, the use of molecular markers for product traceability, and for the sustainable management of C. gallina in the context of global changes.
Bortoletto et al. (Wed,) studied this question.