re = /^NODE_([0-9]+)_.*_([0-9]+)/m
str = 'NODE_1_length_59711_cov_84.026979_g0_i0_1 12.8
NODE_1_length_59711_cov_84.026979_g0_i0_2 18.9
NODE_2_length_59711_cov_84.026979_g0_i0_1 14.3
NODE_2_length_59711_cov_84.026979_g0_i0_2 16.1
NODE_165433_length_59711_cov_84.026979_g0_i0_1 29'
subst = '$1_$2'
result = str.gsub(re, subst)
# Print the result of the substitution
puts result
Please keep in mind that these code samples are automatically generated and are not guaranteed to work. If you find any syntax errors, feel free to submit a bug report. For a full regex reference for Ruby, please visit: http://ruby-doc.org/core-2.2.0/Regexp.html