Glycerol is not suitable for the cryopreservation of quail semen.

1. This study investigated the potential use of glycerol as a cryoprotectant for quail sperm cells. Its role in maintaining sperm fertilising ability and quality parameters, such as motility, was assessed.

INRA96 Supplemented With Phospholipids Liposomes, A Promising Approach for Stallion Sperm Chilling.

Among biotechnologies of reproduction in the equine species, artificial insemination remains the most used technology especially for cooled transported sperm. Although the use of INRA96 extender has demonstrated its efficiency for long-term sperm storage at 4°C or 15°C, some stallions ("bad coolers") are excluded from such technology. Some years ago, we demonstrated that liposomes produced from egg yolk (EY) phospholipids could be an alternative to egg yolk plasma in stallion freezing extenders.

Establishment of conditions for ovum pick up and IVM of jennies oocytes toward the setting up of efficient IVF and in vitro embryos culture procedures in donkey (Equus asinus).

Most wild and domestic donkey breeds are currently endangered or threatened. Their preservation includes the creation of a Genome Resource Bank. Embryos cryopreservation allows the preservation of genetics from both male and female and is the fastest method to restore a breed.

Gene expression profiling reveals new potential players of gonad differentiation in the chicken embryo.

Background: In birds as in mammals, a genetic switch determines whether the undifferentiated gonad develops into an ovary or a testis. However, understanding of the molecular pathway(s) involved in gonad differentiation is still incomplete.

Methodology/principal Findings: With the aim of improving characterization of the molecular pathway(s) involved in gonad differentiation in the chicken embryo, we developed a large scale real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction approach on 110 selected genes for evaluation of their expression profiles during chicken gonad differentiation between days 5.

Identification of germinal disk region derived genes potentially involved in hen fertility.

Despite the regular decrease in fertility observed in hens, especially in "meat" lines, little is known about genes affecting fertility. We used the Affymetrix microarray to search for oocyte genes whose expression would vary in relation to fertility rate in both "laying" and "meat" line hens. We focused on oocyte genes because several of them have been found to be involved in fertility in other species.