Two chromosome-scale genomes of wild Aedes aegypti aegypti mosquitoes from North America and South-East Asia

The yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) is the primary vector for diseases such as chikungunya, dengue fever, yellow fever, and Zika fever. These mosquitoes have been designated as two subspecies: Ae. aegypti formosus (Aaf) and Ae. aegypti aegypti (Aaa)-the former being a darker form limited to sub-Saharan Africa and the latter referring to lighter colored individuals found circumglobally in the tropics and sub-tropics. In addition to morphology and distribution, these two sub-species differ in their behavior and ecology-Aaf females generally feed on non-human mammals and live in rural and sylvatic areas, while Aaa females preferentially feed on humans and are found in human dwellings in urban areas. These characteristics and differences make them species of great medical importance, and the development of resources for understanding their biology has high priority. We recently published a chromosome-scale wild Aaf genome assembly and here we add to this body of resources by presenting two de novo chromosome-scale genome assemblies of wild-caught Aaa from North America and Southeast Asia. Using the Pacific Biosciences HiFi sequencing platform combined with HiC sequencing, we achieved high continuity (N50: >400 Mb; L50: 2) and completeness (BUSCO Single-copy: approximately 97%; diptera set). These assemblies will contribute to further elucidate the global genetic diversity of this major disease vector and uncover the genetic basis of phenotypic differences between the sub-species.