Comparative Genomic Analysis of Catfish Linkage Group 27 with Teleost Species Genomes

Abstract

Comparative genomics is a powerful tool to transfer genomic information from model species to related non-model species. Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) is the primary aquaculture species in the United States. Its existing genome resources such as genomic sequences generated from next generation sequencing, BAC end sequences (BES), physical maps, linkage maps, and integrated linkage and physical maps using BES-associated markers provide a powerful platform for comparative genomic analysis between catfish and other model teleost fish species. This study aimed to gain understanding of similarities and conserved syntenies between the catfish genome and the genomes of several well-characterized fish genomes such as those of zebrafish, medaka, stickleback, and Tetraodon by examining one linkage group.