Contraceptive potential of porcine and feline zona pellucida A, B and C subunits in domestic cats.

Feral cat populations are a major problem in many urban regions throughout the world, threatening biodiversity. Immunocontraception is considered as an alternative and a more humane means to control overpopulation of pest animals than current methods including trapping, poisoning and shooting. In this study, we evaluate porcine zona pellucida (ZP) polypeptide (55 kDa) and feline ZP A, B and C subunits expressed by plasmid vectors as candidate vaccines against fertility in the female domestic cat.