Pictured are silkworms that are an important economic insect and an emerging model organism.Photo: Sina Weibo

Chinese scientists have drawn the world's first super Pan-genome map of silkworm, and are the first to create a "digital silkworm" gene bank, pushing silkworm gene research to a new stage.

The team carried out genome analysis of silkworm germplasm resources, and carried out in-depth research on its genetic variations, artificial selection, and ecological adaptability.

Only a single reference genome and partial resequencing of silkworm were previously available, which were not enough to support the deep mining of genome variation and excellent genes.

The research will have a profound impact on the research of functional genome, promoting the modeling of silkworms, and empowering "the transformation and diverse utilization of silkworms."