Austropuccinia psidii, causing myrtle rust, has a gigabase-sized genome shaped by transposable elements

Austropuccinia psidii has a broad host range with more than 480 myrtaceous species. Since first detected in Australia in 2010, the pathogen has caused the near extinction of at least three species and negatively affected commercial production of several Myrtaceae. To enable molecular and evolutionary studies into A. psidii pathogenicity, we assembled a highly contiguous genome for the pandemic biotype. With an estimated haploid genome size of just over 1 Gb (gigabases), it is the largest assembled fungal genome to date. Overall, we show how transposable elements shaped the genome evolution of A. psidii and provide a greatly needed resource for strategic approaches to combat disease spread. Published in Genes, Genomes, Genetics.