A chromosome-level genome assembly of the panda loach (Yaoshania pachychilus)

Yaoshania pachychilus (Gastromyzontidae, Cypriniformes) is a benthic species inhabiting torrential mountain streams, where it attaches to rocks using adhesive pelvic and pectoral fins. Its juvenile black-white coloration has made it popular in the ornamental fish trade, yet wild populations face increasing threats. Here, we present the first chromosome-level genome assembly for this species, generated using PacBio HiFi and Hi-C technologies. The final assembly spans 451.24 Mb, with a contig N50 of 9.87 Mb, and 99.2% of the sequences are anchored onto 25 pseudo-chromosomes. We annotated repetitive elements accounting for 27.8% of the genome and predicted 21,816 protein-coding genes. BUSCO completeness exceeded 97% for both the genome assembly and gene annotation. This reference genome provides a valuable resource for investigating torrent adaptation and pigmentation in Y. pachychilus, and also supports broader phylogenomic and adaptive evolution studies across Gastromyzontidae.