Arslan Tariq

Abstract Tea plants possess a highly heterozygous genome and produce diverse beneficial metabolites, yet the genomic basis of its metabolic diversity remains fully elusive. Here, we show that single-cell sequencing of 107 sperm cells, combined with PacBio HiFi and ONT ultra-long sequencing, enables an accurate haplotype-resolved genome assembly of Fuding Dabaicha (FDDB). Structural variations (SVs) between the two haplotypes comprise 23.8% of the genome and strongly influence crossover patterns.

INTRODUCTION Tea [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze], a member of the genus Camellia (Theaceae), is one of the most popular beverages worldwide, with rich flavours and health benefits. Tea is usually subclassified into assamica and sinensis varieties, where assamica varieties feature larger leaves and are adapted to more humid and warmer climates, whereas sinensis varieties are more cold hardy, slower growing and have smaller leaves (Zhang et al., 2023).