EMBRYO IMPORTATION AND CRYOBANKING STRATEGIES FOR LABORATORY-ANIMALS AND WILDLIFE SPECIES

The transportation of embryos obtained from animal models, endangered species and nondomestic farmed animals (e.g., deer) can reduce/elimina te the need for;shipping postnatal animals and thus has gained the int erest of the biomedical and conservation fields. Efficient movement of germ plasm worldwide requires established cryobanks. Embryo cryoprese rvation has become a routinely successful technology for many species and efforts to develop usable cryobanks for many target species are on going. Recommended regulations for the movement of embryos from nontra ditional (i.e. other than domestic livestock) species are nonexistent. Efforts are underway to establish domestic and international handling guidelines and to recommend suitable quarantine conditions to facilit ate embryo importation. Further basic research on specific zona pelluc ida-pathogen interactions is encouraged to support embryo movement eff orts.