SYDNEY, May 1 (Xinhua) -- Scientists have successfully mapped the complete genome of the Southern Corroboree Frog, one of Australia's most iconic and endangered amphibians, offering new hope for its survival, an Australian study has revealed.
Australia's University of Melbourne said in a news release on Wednesday that researchers now aim to use this genomic data to breed disease-resistant frogs for eventual reintroduction into their native habitat, and apply the findings to support other amphibians threatened by chytridiomycosis, an infectious, deadly fungal disease.
"This is the first time the genome of this species has been sequenced, and it was not easy due to its enormous size," said the study's lead author Tiffany Kosch from the university.
The sequencing effort, nearly a decade in the making, revealed that the frog's genome is more than three times the size of the human genome, with over 80 percent consisting of non-coding DNA, genetic material that doesn't directly code for proteins, the release said.
Once native to the Snowy Mountains in Australia's state of New South Wales (NSW), this unique and visually striking species is now considered functionally extinct in the wild due to the deadly fungal disease. With no self-sustaining wild populations, the frogs now rely entirely on captive breeding programs such as the one run at Melbourne Zoo, it said.
As one of the highest-quality frog genomes ever produced, it provides critical insight into the genes linked to disease resistance, Kosch said.
"Our focus now turns to using what we have learned to selectively breed frogs that are resistant to chytrid fungus and able to not only survive but thrive naturally in the environment, without ongoing human intervention," she said.
The study, published in Wellcome Open Research, was a collaboration with the Vertebrate Genomes Project at Rockefeller University in the United States and the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. ■
