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Animals
Special Issues
Biotechnology of Reproduction
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Biotechnology of Reproduction

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Genetics and Genomics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2019) | Viewed by 14019

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Jose L. Estrada

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Surgery-Transplantation, The University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA
Interests: xenotransplantation, animal reproduction and genetics, SCNT-cloning, embryo transfer, genetics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The continuous developments in molecular biology and animal reproduction have created an authentic revolution in the animal industry, especially in biomedical sciences. Reproductive technologies like artificial insemination, embryo transfer, IVF, DNA microinjection, sperm-mediated gene transfer, intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) in animals have opened the road towards improvements in animal production and in the generation of genetically modified animals. Even though the progress in these technologies has been enormous, the scientific community is still working on increasing their efficiency. Gene editing and the generation of genetically modified animals have been very dynamic fields of study, particularly in the last decade with the development of site-specific nucleases. Reduced fat deposition, enhanced disease resistance, production of foreign proteins in milk, and models for human diseases or xenotransplantation are some examples of the achievements in this area. Nevertheless, new knowledge and developments are needed to make these technologies more accessible for the livestock production chain as well as for the further generation of animal models for human diseases and organ transplant to humans (xenotransplantation).

We invite original research papers on animal biotechnology of reproduction. We want to include specific topics such as embryo transfer, estrous synchronization, IVF, ICSI, gene editing in animals, somatic cell nuclear transfer, ICSI, sperm-mediated gene transfer, DNA and RNA microinjection, and, in general, reproductive biotechnologies with application in animal production and biomedical sciences.

Dr. Jose L. Estrada
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Animal
  • embryo
  • embryo transfer
  • IVF
  • genome editing
  • SCNT
  • embryo freezing
  • biotechnology of reproduction
  • livestock
  • disease models
  • xenotransplantation

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 3661 KiB  
Article
Differential Expression of Circular RNAs in Polytocous and Monotocous Uterus during the Reproductive Cycle of Sheep
by Yongfu La, Jishun Tang, Ran Di, Xiangyu Wang, Qiuyue Liu, Liping Zhang, Xiaosheng Zhang, Jinlong Zhang, Wenping Hu and Mingxing Chu
Animals 2019, 9(10), 797; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9100797 - 14 Oct 2019
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3240
Abstract
CircRNA plays important roles in cell proliferation, differentiation, autophagy and apoptosis during development. However, there are few reports on circRNAs related to livestock reproduction. In this study, we identified circRNAs by deep sequencing and analyzed their expression in the uteri of polytocous and [...] Read more.
CircRNA plays important roles in cell proliferation, differentiation, autophagy and apoptosis during development. However, there are few reports on circRNAs related to livestock reproduction. In this study, we identified circRNAs by deep sequencing and analyzed their expression in the uteri of polytocous and monotocous sheep (FecB++) during follicular and luteal phases. There were 147 and 364 circRNAs with differential expression in the follicular and luteal phases, respectively. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis was performed for the host genes of the circRNAs to predict the functions of differentially expressed circRNAs. These source genes were mainly involved in the estrogen signaling pathway, TGFβ signaling pathway, GnRH signaling pathway, oxytocin signaling pathway, pentose phosphate pathway, and starch and sucrose metabolism related to reproduction and energy metabolism. CircRNA expression patterns were validated by RT-qPCR. Our findings provide a solid foundation for the identification and characterization of key important circRNAs involved in reproduction. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biotechnology of Reproduction)
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10 pages, 6496 KiB  
Article
The Relationship between Embryonic Development and the Efficiency of Target Mutations in Porcine Endogenous Retroviruses (PERVs) Pol Genes in Porcine Embryos
by Maki Hirata, Manita Wittayarat, Takayuki Hirano, Nhien Thi Nguyen, Quynh Anh Le, Zhao Namula, Mokhamad Fahrudin, Fuminori Tanihara and Takeshige Otoi
Animals 2019, 9(9), 593; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9090593 - 22 Aug 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2795
Abstract
Porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV) is a provirus found in the pig genome that may act as an infectious pathogen in humans who receive pig organ xenotransplantation. Inactivation of the PERV pol gene in porcine cells reportedly affects cell growth. Therefore, the mutation of [...] Read more.
Porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV) is a provirus found in the pig genome that may act as an infectious pathogen in humans who receive pig organ xenotransplantation. Inactivation of the PERV pol gene in porcine cells reportedly affects cell growth. Therefore, the mutation of PERV pol gene in porcine embryos using genome editing may affect the embryonic development. The present study was carried out to investigate the relationship between the mutation of the PERV pol gene in porcine embryos and their development. We introduced, either alone or in combination, three different gRNAs (gRNA1, 2, and 3) into porcine zygotes by genome editing using electroporation of the Cas9 protein (GEEP) system. All three gRNAs targeted the PERV pol gene, and we assessed their effects on porcine embryonic development. Our results showed that the blastocyst formation rates of zygotes electroporated with gRNA3—alone and in combination—were significantly lower (p < 0.05) than those of zygotes electroporated with gRNA1. The mutation rates assessed by the PERV pol gene target site sequencing in individual blastocysts and pooled embryos at the 2-to-8-cell stage did not differ among the three gRNAs. However, the frequency of indel mutations in mutant embryos at the 2-to-8-cell stage trended higher in the embryos electroporated with gRNA3 alone and in combination. Embryonic development may be affected by gRNAs that induce high-frequency indel mutations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biotechnology of Reproduction)
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Review

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8 pages, 1160 KiB  
Review
Factors Influencing the Popularity of Artificial Insemination of Mares in Europe
by Alicja Kowalczyk, Ewa Czerniawska-Piątkowska and Marian Kuczaj
Animals 2019, 9(7), 460; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9070460 - 19 Jul 2019
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 6087
Abstract
The purpose of this review was to analyze factors affecting the popularity of artificial insemination of mares in Europe in the context of sperm quality. Taking into account the prices of stallion semen on the world market, efficiency is important for the profitability [...] Read more.
The purpose of this review was to analyze factors affecting the popularity of artificial insemination of mares in Europe in the context of sperm quality. Taking into account the prices of stallion semen on the world market, efficiency is important for the profitability of its use in artificial insemination programs in Europe. To increase the efficiency of a semen insemination facility, it is necessary to correctly and objectively assess the quality of semen. The available range of tools allows an effective evaluation of the potential fertility of a stallion. For several years, artificial insemination programs in Europe have been gaining popularity. However, the frequency of chilled or frozen semen use is still quite low. This is mainly due to the common, negative opinion about the effectiveness of the use of packaged insemination doses as opposed to natural insemination. Unfortunately, the quality of the semen offered often deviates from expectations, which results in unsatisfactory (and therefore unprofitable) pregnancy rates. This review presents the popularity structure of chilled and frozen semen use in European horse breeding as well as the current state of research on the effectiveness of semen production technology. It is shown that the popularity of using chilled semen in the artificial insemination of mares in Europe has been gradually increasing in the group of sport mares, while in the group of breeding mares, in recent years, frozen semen has been gaining popularity. In the remaining group of mares (not classified as sport or breeding), insemination with chilled semen has been dominant. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biotechnology of Reproduction)
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