De novo transcriptome assembly data for sengon (Falcataria moluccana) trees displaying resistance and susceptibility to boktor stem borers (Xystrocera festiva Pascoe)

Abstract

Sengon (Falcataria moluccana) is a popular tree species in community plantation forests in Java, Indonesia due to its fast-growing and multipurpose characteristics. However, without effective control measures sengon plantations are vulnerable to boktor stem borer (Xystrocera festiva) infestation. Previous research found some boktor-resistant trees amid mostly susceptible individuals. Resistant trees have higher levels of enzyme inhibitory activity than susceptible ones. However, efforts to differentiate between the two accessions using microsatellite markers failed to provide satisfactory answers. This dataset was created to study differences in gene expressions between resistant and susceptible accessions, and to identify candidate genes involved in boktor resistance in sengon. RNA was extracted from fresh wood samples collected from two individual trees: one heavily infested with boktor larvae, and the other showing no signs of infestation. The sample trees grow in close proximity to each other within the same plantation. The RNA was sequenced using the BGISEQ-500 platform and produced 78.5 million raw reads. De novo transcriptome were assembled using Trinity and produced 96,164 contigs after filtering and clustering. This transcriptome data is important for understanding pest resistance mechanisms in sengon trees, serving as basis for an improvement program for resistance to boktor pest.