MGSE can harness the power of files generated in genome sequencing projects to predict the genome size. Required are the FASTA file containing a high continuity assembly and a BAM file with all available reads mapped to this assembly. The script construct_cov_file.py (https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-018-5360-z) allows the generation of a COV file based on the (sorted) BAM file (also possible via MGSE directly). Next, this COV file can be used by MGSE to calculate the coverage in provided reference regions and to calculate the total number of mapped bases. Both values are subjected to the genome size estimation. Providing accurate reference regions is crucial for this genome size estimation.
