Researchers at the University of Georgia are developing a novel way to preserve species that are under threat of extinction using frozen stem cells. They are working to store the stem cells of Sumatran tigers, clouded leopards and other endangered species to prevent them from vanishing from the earth forever.

The university’s Regenerative Bioscience Centre has been working in conjunction with the Atlanta Zoo on the project. Frozen stem cells from Sumatran tigers and clouded leopards will be put into storage to safeguard against their extinction.

The project was created by two scientists from the University of Georgia, Franklin West and Steven Stice. They hope to partially fund the project through crowd funding.

Franklin West describes how simple it is to build a catalogue of frozen stem cells, saying “The stem cell technology that we will use is minimally invasive requiring only a small skin sample,  However, the implications of this potential breakthrough (are) considerable.”

There may be as few as 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild and clouded leopards have been declared as “vulnerable” by wildlife experts. There are few in captivity, but the gene pool is becoming much more limited due to recent deaths.

The rate of species extinction has increased greatly since industrialisation and modern farming practices have intruded into the natural habitat of wild animals.

West suggests the project can help endangered species survive in the long term, saying:

“Our long-term goal is to produce stem-cell-derived sperm capable of being easily stored and producing offspring.”

Source: Saving Endangered Species with Frozen Stem Cells

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