{
  "abstract": "Natural rubber supply depends almost entirely on one tropical tree, motivating development of temperate alternatives. Rubber dandelion (Taraxacum kok-saghyz Rodin) is the leading candidate, with comparatively well characterized rubber biosynthesis pathways, but its large, repeat-rich genome has left breeding genomics far behind pathway biology. In response, we assembled OSU TarKok 3.0, a 1.19-Gb nuclear reference in which eight chromosome-scale scaffolds contain 98% of the sequence. Continuity within chromosomes improved markedly, with contig N50 rising from 1.3 to 37.8 Mb, and conserved gene-space recovery improved accordingly. Macrosynteny showed strong chromosome conservation within Taraxacum and, when compared to lettuce, displayed four nearly intact and four composite chromosomes, a signature compatible with descending dysploidy accompanied by rearrangement rather than a single end-to-end fusion. Across nine Cichorieae genomes, none of six surveyed rubber-related gene families was uniquely enlarged in rubber dandelion. Instead, a cis-prenyltransferase locus, a rubber transferase activator, and three small rubber particle protein genes were enriched in underground tissues and grouped with rubber elongation factor in a latex-associated co-expression module, favoring coordinated pathway deployment over species-specific family expansion. Intersecting uniquely mappable and nonrepetitive sequence defined the mappable genome, approximately 210 Mb or 18% of the assembly, within which markers can be interpreted allelically. Mapping in an independent F2 family of 83 plants identified a chromosome 1 locus for filled-seed production under restricted cross-pollination, whereas herbicide response yielded no significant locus in this design. OSU TarKok 3.0 links chromosome reorganization, pathway deployment, and domestication traits into one framework for improving an outcrossing crop.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "New results",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 6,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "P. Vargas-Mejia"
    },
    {
      "name": "C. Gutierrez-Manriquez"
    },
    {
      "name": "E. S. Anderson"
    },
    {
      "name": "D. R. Williams"
    },
    {
      "name": "J. C. Vega-Arreguin"
    },
    {
      "name": "J. Fresnedo Ramirez"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8z6pxrqtqy7b5.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.64898/2026.10.23.761435",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.23.761435v1.full",
  "id": "8z6pxrqtqy7b5",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.23.761435v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "biorxiv",
      "plant biology"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1110|Chromosomal and Genetic Variations"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223909390",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.23.761435v1.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-23",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8z6pxrqtqy7b5.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:29:46Z",
      "native_id": "10.64898/2026.10.23.761435",
      "source": "biorxiv",
      "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.23.761435v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "biorxiv:plant biology",
      "subfield": "plant-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "From chromosome-scale assembly to the mappable genome of rubber dandelion: chromosome reorganization, rubber-pathway coordination, and domestication traits",
  "title_text": "From chromosome-scale assembly to the mappable genome of rubber dandelion: chromosome reorganization, rubber-pathway coordination, and domestication traits",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:29:46Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/8z6pxrqtqy7b5",
  "venue": "bioRxiv",
  "versions": []
}