High-quality draft genome sequence of endophytic Kluyvera ascorbata strain PCL31 isolated from Piper crocatum (red betel)

<ns5:p> Endophytic bacteria within medicinal plants are a largely untapped reservoir of bioactive compounds and adaptive genetic traits. <ns5:italic>Piper crocatum</ns5:italic> (red betel), a Southeast Asian medicinal herb rich in flavonoids, alkaloids, and phenolics, offers a chemically selective niche for endophytes, yet the genomes of its microbial associates remain poorly characterised. <ns5:italic>Kluyvera ascorbata</ns5:italic> occurs as a plant-associated endophyte and an opportunistic human pathogen, and its chromosomal <ns5:italic>bla</ns5:italic> KLUA gene is the recognised progenitor of the clinically important CTX-M-2 β-lactamase sublineage. We report a high-quality draft genome of endophytic strain PCL31, isolated from surface-sterilised <ns5:italic>Piper crocatum</ns5:italic> tissues collected in Bogor, Indonesia. Whole-genome sequencing used the Oxford Nanopore PromethION platform, with <ns5:italic>de novo</ns5:italic> assembly in Flye, polishing in Medaka, and quality assessment by QUAST and BUSCO. The assembly spans 4,978,299 bp across eight contigs (N50 1.45 Mbp; GC content 54.26%; 100% BUSCO completeness, <ns5:italic>enterobacterales_odb10</ns5:italic> , n = 440). Species identity was confirmed by digital DNA–DNA hybridisation (dDDH 88.6% against the type strain <ns5:italic>K. ascorbata</ns5:italic> ATCC 33433) and average nucleotide identity (ANI 98.6% against reference genome NZ_CP096201.1). Annotation identified 4,579 protein-coding sequences, 22 ribosomal RNA, 88 transfer RNA, and 81 non-coding RNA genes, and no CRISPR/Cas systems. antiSMASH 8.0 predicted four biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs): a 53.8 kb non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS)–metallophore cluster matching the conserved enterobactin locus (MIBiG similarity 0.83), plus three low-similarity clusters (≤ 0.50) of uncertain novelty — a ribosomally synthesised and post-translationally modified peptide (RiPP)-like cluster, a terpene-precursor cluster, and an azole-containing RiPP. CARD-RGI profiling returned one Perfect hit ( <ns5:italic>bla</ns5:italic> CTX-M-2) and 25 Strict hits, the latter dominated by intrinsic <ns5:italic>Enterobacteriaceae</ns5:italic> efflux and target-modification genes; phenotypic confirmation was not performed. This genome provides a resource for bioprospecting secondary metabolites from medicinal-plant endophytes and underscores the value of plant-associated isolates for biosafety and antimicrobial-resistance surveillance in opportunistic pathogens. </ns5:p>