Progress in reproductive biotechnology in swine

Area of Science:

• Reproductive biology and biotechnology in swine.

Background:

• Swine reproductive biotechnology is advancing, focusing on in vitro embryo production, identical multiple generation, and transgenic pigs for xenotransplantation.
• Current in vitro production methods in swine face challenges like suboptimal oocyte maturation and fertilization, resulting in lower success rates compared to cattle.

Purpose of the Study:

• To summarize recent advancements in swine reproductive biotechnology, including in vitro embryo production, cloning, and genetic engineering.
• To highlight the potential of transgenic pigs in xenotransplantation and pharmaceutical protein production.

Main Methods:

• In vitro maturation, in vitro fertilization, and in vitro culture of porcine embryos.
• Microsurgical bisection of embryos for monozygotic twinning.
• Culture of individual blastomeres and somatic cell nuclear transfer.
• DNA microinjection into zygotes for generating transgenic pigs.

Main Results:

• In vitro production of porcine embryos is feasible but less efficient than in cattle, with identified issues in oocyte maturation and fertilization.
• Microsurgical bisection yields a low rate of monozygotic twinning, and cultured blastomeres can develop into blastocysts with leukemia inhibitory factor support.
• Successful generation of piglets via somatic cell nuclear transfer and transgenic pigs through DNA microinjection, demonstrating potential for xenotransplantation and pharmaceutical production.

Conclusions:

• Despite significant progress, swine reproductive biotechnology development lags behind cattle and sheep.
• Future advancements in genetic engineering, particularly homologous recombination, will drive widespread applications in agriculture and biomedicine.
• Transgenic pigs expressing human complement regulatory proteins show promise for overcoming hyperacute rejection in xenotransplantation.