An improved genome assembly of the saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea (Engelm.) Britton & Rose).

We present an improved genome assembly of the saguaro cactus ( Carnegiea gigantea (Engelm.) Britton & Rose), obtained by incorporating long-read PacBio data to the existing short reads. The assembly improves in terms of total size, contiguity, and accuracy, allowing to extend the range of sequence analyses beyond the single-gene scale. Consequently, the assembly is 16% larger and has 20% more genes, expanding the resources for a neglected yet very remarkable plant family such as Cactaceae. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.