Chromosome-scale genome assembly and annotation of the white star apple (Gambeya albida)
We are proud to announce the publication of the first chromosome-scale genome assembly of the white star apple (Gambeya albida) in Scientific Data, a Nature Portfolio journal.
For us at Malimbe Foundation, this achievement carries a special significance. We funded this project because we believe some of the most important scientific questions of our time can be answered by African scientists, on African soil, when they have the resources to do so.
The project was led by our founder Abiodun Lukman Aroworamimo, whose leadership and expertise were instrumental in bringing this work to completion.
The white star apple, known across different parts of West Africa as Agbalumo, Udara, Agwaliba and Alasa, is an important indigenous species with nutritional, cultural and economic value. Yet its genetic makeup had remained largely unexplored.
That has now changed.
Using advanced sequencing and genomic approaches, the team produced a high-quality reference genome assembled across 13 chromosomes. This resource opens new possibilities for research into the conservation, propagation, nutritional properties, medicinal potential and agricultural development of this remarkable African species.
We would like acknowledge inqaba biotec, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ajisefini Consulting as well as the African BioGenome Project, for their contributions to this important work.
What makes this achievement particularly meaningful is that it represents a growing capacity for Africa to generate its own genomic knowledge. The sequencing, assembly and analysis were carried out using African expertise and infrastructure, with the project supported by African funding.
And there is more to celebrate.
At the recently concluded Faculty of Science Conference at the University of Lagos, our founder, Abiodun Lukman Aroworamimo, was awarded Best Oral Presentation, another recognition of the quality of research being driven by the next generation of African scientists.
These moments reinforce why Malimbe Foundation exists.
Our long-term goal is to provide funding for groundbreaking research on the African continent, particularly work that expands our understanding of Africa’s biodiversity and creates knowledge that can serve generations to come.
There is so much about Africa that remains to be discovered.
We want to help fund the people asking those questions.
And we are only getting started.
Read the published study in Scientific Data:
https://lnkd.in/e6MKUWvR
