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HEIndividual fellowship2023–2025

CRYOCHICK · Innovative cryopreservation methods for chicken germplasm

Horizon Europe — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Duration
2023-04-10 → 2025-04-09
EU contribution
€203,464
Participants
3
Scheme
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF

Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.

Results in brief

Innovative cryopreservation methods for chicken germplasm

Poultry products are the most consumed source of animal protein globally. To enable current and future poultrygenetic improvement towards climate adaptation and sustainable farming practices to meet future nutritional demands it is essential to maintain and make available the existing genetic diversity within and between the breeds. Gene banks can assist in conservingenetic diversity and reintroduction and implementation of important traits or genetic variants into poultry lines. The main goal of CRYOCHICK is to develop effective cryopreservation methods for ex-situ conservation of male and female chicken germplasm. Existing strategies and methods for gene banking of chicken reproductive material are not adequate because 1) chicken sperm are very sensitive to cryopreservation protocols, which results in highly variable and mostly poor reproduction success rate with cryopreserved semen, especially in native breeds; 2) some native breeds (considered “bad freezers”), have very poor semen cryoresistance; 3) glycerol, the most effective sperm cryoprotectant, is contraceptive in the hen; 4) When only semen is stored in gene banks, six generations of back-crossing are needed to recover a lost original genotype, which is impractical and costly, hence we also need cryopreserved female germplasm 5) cryopreservation of chicken oocytes and embryos is currently impossible due to the very large egg yolk, high lipid content, and the polar organization of bird ova, while semen alone does not capture genes of mitochondria and the W sex-chromosome6; 6) cryopreservation of female primordial germ cells (PGCs) is possible, but is difficult, laborious, and costly. Therefore, new strategies for cost-effective gene banking, and new effective cryopreservation methods for both male and female chicken germplasms are required. The methods and strategies developed here will likely also benefit other poultry species and conservation of wild relatives

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Poultry products are the most consumed source of animal protein globally. To enable current and future poultry genetic improvement towards climate adaptation and sustainable farming practices to meet future nutritional demands, it is essential to maintain and make available the existing genetic diversity within and between the breeds. Gene banks can assist in conserving genetic diversity and reintroduction and implementation of important traits or genetic variants into poultry lines. The main goal of CRYOCHICK is to develop effective cryopreservation methods for ex-situ conservation of male and female chicken germplasm. Existing strategies and methods for gene banking of chicken reproductive material are not adequate for several reasons such as poor fertility rate of cryopreserved semen, the contraceptive effect in hen of glycerol (the most effective sperm cryoprotectant), the current impossible cryopreservation of chicken oocytes due to its telolecithal structure, while semen alone does not capture genes of mitochondria and the W sex-chromosome. Therefore, new effective cryopreservation methods for both male and female chicken germplasms, as well as new strategies for maintaining and using the stored cryopreserved materials for cost-effective gene banking are required. The methods and strategies developed will likely also benefit other poultry species and conservation of wild relatives. CRYOCHICK comprises a high level training program for Dr. Bernal and different coordinated actions performed by prestigious institutes from different countries and research fields promoting international collaboration, interdisciplinarity and transfer of top knowledge to the private sector. The European competitiveness will be reinforced by addressing, with the highest level of knowledge, important global scientific and societal concerns such as maintenance of biodiversity and food security, both serious threatened by climate change.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

  • STICHTING WAGENINGEN RESEARCH · WageningenCoordinatorNetherlands
  • NEMZETI BIODIVERZITAS- ES GENMEGORZESI KOZPONT · TapioszeleHungary
  • THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH · EdinburghUnited Kingdom

Links

Data: CORDIS, © European Union