First Test Tube Puppies: IVF Puppies Might Help Prevent Human And Dog Diseases
The first test tube puppies have been born. U.S. scientists have successfully utilized in vitro fertilization to breed a litter of IVF puppies. The researchers are hopeful that the project will pave the way to eradicate diseases not just in canines but in their two-legged best friends as well.
The IVF puppies, a litter of seven, were born in July after 19 embryos were implanted in their surrogate mother. The test tube puppies project was conducted jointly by researchers at the Smithsonian Institute and Cornell University. The scientists said that attempts to breed a viable litter of puppies via in vitro fertilization have been ongoing since the 1970s.
World’s first “test tube” puppies born, in the most adorable scientific breakthrough ever: https://t.co/gpH7u2h1gJ pic.twitter.com/LlmsEzdDMH
— CNN (@CNN) December 10, 2015
Prior attempts to deliver a litter of test tube puppies failed due to the reproductive systems of dogs differing of those from other mammals, CNN reports. The first IVF puppies were a litter of half-pound beagles and cocker spaniel and beagle mixes.
A Public Library Science ONE report revealed that dogs and humans share about 350 “heritable disorders” and other traits, with humans. The scientists involved in the IVF puppies project feel that because dogs possess almost double the number of human-similar traits, their research could shed light on how and why specific characteristics and disorders occur and ultimately figure out how to prevent such occurrences.
Alex Travis, a Baker Institute for Animal Health associate professor of reproductive biology at the school’s Cornell College, was a co-author on the first test tube puppies report. According to Travis, making two changes in the fertilization process allowed the IVF puppies project to be successful this time.
Scientists reportedly found that if dog eggs were allowed to remain in the oviduct for just a single extra day, the eggs stood a far better chance of becoming fertilized and viable. Travis said in the project report that by adding magnesium to the cell culture, it allowed the researchers to essentially mimic the natural conditions in a female dog’s reproductive system and to foster the preparation of the egg to receive the sperm. Once the scientists discovered the two changes would offer them the greatest chances of success, they were able to determine that in doing so, it allowed chances of fertilization to climb by approximately 90 percent.
World’s first test-tube puppies are born after IVF: https://t.co/b8cAcWwIAz pic.twitter.com/FZamcUNzWi
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 10, 2015
A small window of opportunity to implant the embryos also hampered the test tube puppies attempts both in the past and during the current successful project. Dogs come into heat only once or twice a year, prompting the researchers involved with the IVF puppies experiment freeze the beagle and cocker spaniel embryos for an extended period of time. Waiting for the right moment to arrive likely increased both the anxiety and excitement of the researchers.
The knowledge gained from the first test tube puppies project to achieve successful results is also hoped to help foster the development of endangered dog species. The African wild dog (or African painted dog) is in danger of becoming extinct, and there are currently less than 3,000 of the breed still in existence. The dogs roam in wild in the eastern and southern portions of the continent.
The project results may also lead to the prevention of ailments common to specific breeds of dogs. A short list of heritable diseases notes that blue heelers and Australian shepherds are known to experience hip dysplasia, golden retrievers develop lymphoma more than many other breeds of dogs, and spaniels are prone to Mitral valve disease, DogTime notes.
What do you think about the fist test tube puppies? Do you support the use of IVF puppies being used to research ways to thwart both canine and human diseases?
[Image via Shutterstock.com]
