Production of Agu piglets after transfer of embryos produced in vitro.

The present study was conducted to examine the feasibility of in vitro embryo production and transfer technologies for producing piglets of Agu, an Okinawan indigenous pig breed. After collection of oocytes from surgically dissected ovaries, they were subjected to in vitro maturation. After in vitro maturation/fertilization, a total of 616 putative embryos were transferred into four commercial Western pig recipients, one of which became pregnant and farrowed a total of eight Agu piglets.

Embryo production by intracytoplasmic injection of sperm retrieved from neonatal testicular tissue of Agu pigs after cryopreservation and grafting into nude mice.

The Agu is the only indigenous pig breed in Japan but its population is very small. In order to estimate the efficacy of testicular xenografting for the conservation of Agu pigs, we investigated whether neonatal testicular fragments would acquire the capacity to produce sperm after they had been cryopreserved and grafted into nude mice. Although on day 180 (day 0 = xenografting), grafts showed a low proportion of seminiferous tubule cross-sections containing sperm (0.

Comparison of growth performances, carcass characteristics, and meat qualities of Okinawan indigenous Agu pigs and crossbred pigs sired by Agu or Duroc boar.

Indigenous Okinawa Agu pigs are crossed with Large White × Landrace (WL) pigs to improve their meat production, but there is little information regarding the crossbreeding effects. The study aims to compare growth, carcass characteristics, and meat qualities of Agu pigs with those of WL crossbreeds with Agu sires (WLA) or Duroc sires (WLD). WLA pigs showed better growth performance and carcass characteristics and less intramuscular fat (IMF) contents than Agu ones, but they had higher fat deposition, smaller longissimus dorsi muscle area, and higher IMF contents than WLD pigs.

Evaluation of the genetic structure of indigenous Okinawa Agu pigs using microsatellite markers.

Objective: Agu pigs are indigenous to the Okinawa prefecture, which is the southernmost region of Japan. Agu pigs were exposed to a genetic bottleneck during the 20th century, due to the introduction of European pig breeds. The objective of this study was to elucidate the genetic structure of Agu pigs and to determine their relationships with those of five European breeds, two Chinese breeds and Ryukyu wild boar using microsatellite markers.

Maternal lineage of Okinawa indigenous Agu pig inferred from mitochondrial DNA control region.

Objective: The Agu is the only native pig breed in Japan, which is reared in Okinawa prefecture, the southernmost region in Japan. Its origins are considered to be of Asian lineage; however, the genetic background of the Agu is still unclear. The objective of this study was to elucidate the maternal lineage of the Okinawa indigenous Agu pig with the use of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region.