In Vitro Culture of Embryos from Domestic Cats

Herrick, Jason R.

doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-9566-0_17

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…At the conclusion of each series, the volume of recovered sample was determined and small aliquots (~5 µL) were used to evaluate pH (pH Indicator Strip; Millipore Sigma), the proportion of motile sperm (0-100%), and sperm morphology (fixed in 0.4% glutaraldehyde) (Howard 1993, Herrick et al 2010a). The remaining sample was diluted 1:1 with HEPES-buffered Feline Optimized Culture Medium (FOCMH) (Herrick et al 2010a, Herrick 2019) and maintained at room temperature. At the conclusion of the procedure, the samples recovered from each series were combined to determine the overall concentration of spermatozoa (x10 6 /mL) using a hemocytometer and the total number of recovered spermatozoa (x10 6 ) was calculated.…”

Section: Reproductive Exams and Semen Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors affecting reproductive traits in male snow leopards (Unciauncia)

Herrick

Iske

Santymire

et al. 2020

Reproduction and Fertility

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The population of snow leopards (Uncia uncia) maintained in U.S. zoos is no longer sustainable due to poor reproductive success. Our objective was to assess reproductive traits in male snow leopards and identify factors (markers of oxidative stress in seminal fluid, surveys of husbandry practices, gonadal and adrenocortical activity, dietary intake of various nutrients, and genetics) that may affect ejaculate traits and subsequent fertility. Ejaculates (2.9 ± 0.2 ml) from 32 male snow leopards (9.8 ± 0.7 y; 38.6 ± 0.8 kg) housed at 27 institutions contained 119.2 + 26.0 x 106 spermatozoa, of which 75.1 ± 2.3% were motile and 28.6 ± 2.6% exhibited normal morphology. Overall, 34% of males produced <5 million spermatozoa and 27% of males produced spermatozoa with <20% normal morphology. Activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the seminal fluid was negatively correlated (P<0.05, r2=0.90) with normal sperm morphology. Husbandry practices, mean concentrations of fecal androgen metabolites (fAM), and baseline concentrations of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGM), inbreeding coefficients, and generations each male was removed from the founders in their lineages were not correlated (P>0.05) with the total number of spermatozoa or the proportion of spermatozoa with normal morphology. Total sperm count was positively correlated (P<0.05, R2=0.86) with weekly intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and the proportion of spermatozoa with normal morphology tended (P<0.10, R2=0.31) to be positively correlated with copper intake. Altering the nutrient composition of snow leopard diets could provide managers with a possible method of improving reproductive traits in this endangered species.

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Section: Reproductive Exams and Semen Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors affecting reproductive traits in male snow leopards (Unciauncia)

Herrick

Iske

Santymire

et al. 2020

Reproduction and Fertility

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“…It can be used directly to fertilize oocytes or cryopreserved [ 9 , 10 ]. Fertilization of domestic cat oocytes is performed by co-culture of oocytes with sperm or by intracytoplasmic sperm injection, and in vitro produced embryos can be cultured up to the blastocyst stage [ 11 ]. Even though embryo transfer is not a standard method in the domestic cat, several litters of live kittens have resulted from this technique [ 5 , 12 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current State of In Vitro Embryo Production in African Lion (Panthera leo)

Zahmel

Simonsen

Stagegaard³

et al. 2022

Animals

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In the last 30–40 years, in vitro maturation (IVM) and fertilization (IVF) of domestic cat oocytes have been established as part of the panel of assisted reproduction technologies. As a representative of wild felids, the African lion is not yet considered endangered. Nevertheless, the zoo population management of the African lion itself as well as other closely related felids would benefit from the establishment of an IVF system. Here, we aimed to investigate the transferability of domestic cat IVF technology to the African lion. From the ovaries of 42 lionesses aged between 0.75 and 15 years, a total of 933 IVF-suitable oocytes were retrieved and subjected to IVM and IVF. The overall maturation rate was 40.6% and 18.9% of these oocytes cleaved after fertilization, respectively. Embryos were generated by intracytoplasmic sperm cell injection as well as co-culture with epididymal sperm. Improvements in the model system also led to an improved outcome with in vitro produced embryos in the lion. Compared to domestic cats, the transportation of gonads to a specialized laboratory was time-consuming and influenced oocyte quality negatively. In conclusion, the domestic cat IVF system is adoptable for the African lion, although success rates are still lower.

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