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Title: RECENT ADVANCES IN SEX PRESELECTION OF CATTLE: FLOW CYTOMETRIC SORTING OF X- & Y-CHROMOSOME BEARING SPERM BASED ON DNA TO PRODUCE PROGENY

Author
item Johnson, Lawrence
item CRAN DAVID G - ABC LTD,CAMBRIDGE,ENGLAND
item POLGE CHRISTOPHE - ABC LTD,CAMBRIDGE,ENGLAND

Submitted to: Theriogenology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/15/1994
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: The ability to control the sex of livestock offspring prior to conception would be highly beneficial to livestock producers. This paper reviews the current progress towards transferring this technology to the cattle industry for use in conjunction with in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. A semi-practical method of sexing sperm by flow cytometric sorting and subsequent transfer of embryos to recipient cows has been developed. Six calves have been born of predicted sex. More than 200 embryos produced from sexed sperm have been transferred into recipient cows. The calving results from these studies will provide guidance for the practical application of the sperm sexing technology to cattle production.

Technical Abstract: Recent progress, briefly reviewed here has led to the availability of a method of gender preselection in farm animals that can be used for producing progeny in cattle, sheep, and swine under semi-practical conditions. Sperm are separated based on the inherent difference in DNA content in the X-and Y-chromosome bearing sperm using flow cytometry/cell sorting technology. Sperm are stained with Hoechst 33342 which binds to the DNA helix in an amount proportional to the amount of DNA thus forming the basis for the method. Calves of predicted sex have been born using sorted sperm in conjunction with IVF resulting in embryos for transfer. Swine, rabbits and sheep have been produced using surgical insemination with smaller numbers of sperm than are required for artificial insemination. The inability to accrue large numbers of sperm in a short period of time precludes standard insemination techniques with sorted sperm. All offspring that have been born using this technology have been morphologically normal, and swine and rabbit offspring have shown normal reproductive function through two generations. Research to streamline hardware and improve staining technology is ongoing, while at the same time the method is being developed for the commercial embryo market.