Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Safeguard of Feline Endangered Species

The growth of the human population and the escalating consumption of natural resources have reduced wild habitats, modifying the existing balance of biological cycles. Therefore, ex situ conservation efforts have received renewed attention as a potential safeguard for species with an uncertain future in the wild. Most wild felid species are classified as rare, vulnerable, or endangered due to poaching and habitat loss. Any directed action taken by humans to enhance animal reproduction results in assisted reproductive technologies (ART) development. These technologies have been included in programs for the conservation of endangered species. Therefore, ART provide a new approach in the safeguard programs of felid biodiversity. Currently, ART mainly include Artificial Insemination (AI); In Vitro Embryo Production (IVEP) consisting of In Vitro Maturation (IVM), In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), In Vitro Culture (IVC), Embryo Transfer (ET), and Intra Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI); gamete/embryo cryopreservation; gamete/embryo sexing; gamete/embryo micromanipulation; Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT); and genome resource banking.The domestic cat is used as a model for the ART development in Felid species and as a successful recipient of embryos from closely related, small, nondomestic cats. The Indian desert cat and African wildcat kittens have been born after IVF-derived embryo transfers.The creation of the biological resource bank represents a complementary support tool for the application of ART in the in situ and ex situ conservation of endangered felids. Its chief purpose in the protection of endangered species is to preserve the maximum current genetic and biological diversity of the population by the processing and cryopreservation of germinal cells and tissues from dead animals so that these genetic recourses may be used in future reproductive projects. In humans and domestic species, it is usually possible to plan the place and time for gonad explants to recover germplasm, thereby enabling a reduction in the gonad storage time in the transport medium. In wild species, it is impossible to predict when and where the gonads can be collected. The gonads can be recovered postmortem, which entails the possibility that the collection place could be distant from a laboratory for IVEP.In the present chapter, we will make an overview of the data from detectable literatures and focus our attention on analysis of methods utilized in ART for maximizing their efficiency in feline species.