Chromosome-level Genome Assembly of the Halophytic Turfgrass Zoysia macrostachya

Zoysia macrostachya Franch. & Sav. is a halophytic perennial turfgrass in the Poaceae family, commonly found in the coastal regions of Korea, Japan, and East Asia. Z. macrostachya thrives in high-salinity environments, making it an excellent model for studying abiotic stress resilience. In this study, we present a chromosome-level genome assembly of Z. macrostachya, constructed using Oxford Nanopore long reads, Illumina short reads, and Omni-C sequencing data. The assembly spans 329.78 Mb across 20 chromosomes, with a scaffold N50 of 19.24 Mb, and includes complete telomeric sequences at both ends. The assembly showed 97.8% complete BUSCOs, indicating high genome completeness. Repeat element and gene annotation identified 44.03% of the genome as repetitive elements and 33,474 protein-coding genes. The gene annotation showed 97.1% complete BUSCOs and 86.92% functionally characterized genes. Macrosynteny analysis highlighted highly collinear relationships with related species, providing a foundational understanding of the Z. macrostachya genomic structure. This high-quality genome serves as a valuable resource for advancing salinity tolerance research and improving the genetic diversity of Zoysia species.