Victory marks a triumph for camel conservation efforts
Calf born from frozen embryo boosts UAE labs
The Camel Reproduction Centre (CRC) yesterday announced the birth of Victory, a dromedary camel calf born from a frozen embryo in Dubai.
CRC, in association with the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL), performed the successful advanced ultra-fast freezing or vitrification, rehydration (thawing) and transfer of a seven-day old camel embryo.
Dr Muren Herrid, formerly Head of Cell Culture at the CRC, has developed a protocol for vitrifying camel embryos, which involves using higher concentrations of less toxic cryoprotectants than those normally used in other livestock species.
During the past two breeding seasons, pregnancy rates of around 50 per cent have been achieved following transfer of vitrified/thawed camel embryos.
Dr Herrid says his protocol differs from all other methods of vitrification because sucrose, used in the thawing process for other species, has proven toxic to camel embryos and has therefore been replaced with other sugars. Freezing embryos also means that chosen genetic combinations can be stored for years.