{
  "abstract": "Manilkara zapota (Chiku) is a tropical fruit tree in the Sapotaceae family. In this study, we assembled the first Telomere-to-telomere (T2T) genome assembly of M. zapota, spanning 1.6 Gb with high contiguity (N50 = 134 Mb). Comparative analysis revealed a very recent divergence and a shared WGD among Sapotaceae members. A newly constructed Ancestral Sapotaceae Karyotype (ASK) suggests a fusion-dominated chromosome structure in the family. The genome exhibits lineage-specific proliferation of transposable elements (TEs) accompanied by a recent burst of LTR-Gypsy elements (~0.09 mya). Genome-wide methylation profiling revealed elevated CpG and CHG methylation levels and age-dependent reinforcement of TE silencing, suggesting strong epigenetic regulation that stabilises the repeat-rich genome while maintaining gene expression. Collectively, these findings advance our understanding of repeat-rich genome evolution in plants and provide a valuable framework for genomic-assisted breeding in M. zapota.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Bhopal"
  ],
  "article_type": "New results",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "M. S. Bisht"
    },
    {
      "name": "M. Singh"
    },
    {
      "name": "M. A. Puthumana"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "S. Sharma"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "V. K. Sharma"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcqwgs0rv1ff.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.64898/2026.09.02.748860",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.02.748860v1.full",
  "id": "7kcqwgs0rv1ff",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.02.748860v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "biorxiv",
      "genomics"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1110|Chromosomal and Genetic Variations"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7208734511",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.02.748860v1.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-02",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcqwgs0rv1ff.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:30Z",
      "native_id": "10.64898/2026.09.02.748860",
      "source": "biorxiv",
      "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.02.748860v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "biorxiv:genomics",
      "subfield": "genetics-genomics"
    }
  ],
  "title": "A telomere-to-telomere genome of Manilkara zapota (Chiku) reveals the repeat-mediated genome evolution",
  "title_text": "A telomere-to-telomere genome of Manilkara zapota (Chiku) reveals the repeat-mediated genome evolution",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:30Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcqwgs0rv1ff",
  "venue": "bioRxiv",
  "versions": []
}