Although reef-building corals are declining worldwide, responses to bleaching vary within and across species and are partly heritable. Toward predicting bleaching response from genomic data, we generated a chromosome-scale genome assembly for the coral Acropora millepora. We obtained whole-genome sequences for 237 phenotyped samples collected at 12 reefs along the Great Barrier Reef, among which we inferred little population structure. Scanning the genome for evidence of local adaptation, we detected signatures of long-term balancing selection in the heat-shock co-chaperone sacsin. We conducted a genome-wide association study of visual bleaching score for 213 samples, incorporating the polygenic score derived from it into a predictive model for bleaching in the wild. These results set the stage for genomics-based approaches in conservation strategies.

尽管全世界范围内建造珊瑚礁的珊瑚正在减少，但对漂白的反应在物种内部和物种之间有所不同，并且在一定程度上是可遗传的。为了根据基因组数据预测漂白反应，我们为珊瑚Acropora millepora生成了染色体规模的基因组集。我们获得了大堡礁沿线12个礁石上收集的237个表型样本的全基因组序列，其中我们推断出很少的种群结构。扫描基因组以寻找局部适应的证据，我们检测到了热休克伴侣伴侣蛋白中长期平衡选择的特征。。我们对213个样本的视觉漂白评分进行了全基因组关联研究，并将其衍生的多基因评分纳入了野外漂白的预测模型。这些结果为保护策略中基于基因组学的方法奠定了基础。