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The germplasm is a resource and tool for the conservation of genetic diversity in animals, including birds. Securing germplasm is limited in most bird species due to difficulties in semen collection and germ cell isolation, lack of germ cell-specific markers, and in vitro culture systems. Here, we report the production of germline chimeric quails by transplant of cryopreserved testicular cells (TCs) into the developing embryo. The testicular germ cell properties were maintained after freeze-thaw, with no significant reduction in cell viability irrespective of storage length. Cryopreserved TCs were transferred into Hamburger Hamilton (HH) stage 14-17 quail embryos, and were demonstrated to migrate into the embryonic gonads with similar efficiency to freshly isolated TCs. Twenty of 81 recipient embryos yielded hatchlings from cryopreserved TCs and the germline transmission efficiency was similar to that of freshly isolated cells. In conclusion, cryopreserved adult quail TCs are capable of (de)differentiation into functional gametes in recipient quail gonads and can generate donor TCs-derived progenies. This system is feasible for the isolation of sufficient germplasm resources from various bird species for conservation purposes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Surrogate propagation is a systematic approach to producing donor-derived gametes using germline chimeras. In fish, the use of germline chimeras to study the development of germ cells was first conducted in the 1990s in the model fish species medaka (Oryzias latipes) and zebrafish (Danio rerio). More recently, surrogate propagation has been actively investigated as a means of efficient gamete production not only in model fish species but also in aquaculture species and endangered species. Surrogate propagation has the following components: combination of the donor and host species, host sterilization, donor cell preparation, transplantation of germ cells, and gametogenesis and gamete production in surrogate fish. In this review, we first provide a general overview of previous studies related to germ cell transplantation and the methodologies developed for different species, and consider how these have been applied in practice. Second, we consider the development of primordial germ cells in fish embryos, particularly the molecular biological approaches used for the visualization of germ cells and sterilization of host embryos. Finally, we discuss sex control in germline chimeras, which may be a key component of the use of surrogate production in aquaculture. We focus on techniques to produce sterile fish, as these are crucial to the exclusive production of donor gametes in a surrogate host. The advantages and disadvantages of various aspects of surrogate propagation are discussed, the potential use of surrogate propagation as a seedling production system is considered, and future perspectives for aquaculture are suggested., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

We report, for the first time, a series of baseline techniques comprising isolation and transplantation of female and male early-stage germ cells in sturgeon to generate a germline chimera as a potential tool for surrogate reproduction and gene banking. Cells were dissociated from testis, characterized by mostly spermatogonia, and from ovary, exclusively comprising oogonia and previtellogenic oocytes, of Acipenser baerii, using 0.3% trypsin (2 hours, 23 °C) dissolved in PBS, isotonic with blood plasma. The dissociated germ cells were sorted by Percoll gradient centrifugation followed by immunolabeling with germ cell-specific vasa antibody DDX4, while 10% to 30% Percoll solution contained 79.4% and 70.8% labeled testicular and ovarian cells. Sorted germ cells were transplanted into a cavity close to a presumptive genital ridge of newly hatched heterospecific Acipenser ruthenus larvae with fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled endogenous primordial germ cells. The transplanted germ cells were randomly distributed in the body cavity through 30-day posttransplantation (dpt). Subsequently, the cells were organized into genital ridges 50 dpt and proliferated 90 dpt. The number of both transplanted and endogenous germ cells significantly increased from 18.1, 22.2, and 29.1 (30 dpt) to 108.5, 90.8, and 118.5 (90 dpt) in ovarian, testicular, and endogenous germ cells, respectively (P < 0.05). The efficiency of transplantation was 60% (counted 90 dpt)., (Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Diseases such as avian influenza can destroy turkey flocks, potentially resulting in the loss of valuable or rare genetic material. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop a means to archive such germplasm. Germline chimeras produced by intravascular transfer of primordial germ cells (PGC) have been reported in other avian species but not turkeys. This study examined the feasibility of both establishing an archive of frozen PGC, and producing germline chimeras by injecting the thawed PGC into host embryos. To meet these aims, the following experiments were performed: (1) PGC identification within turkey embryos; (2) development of an efficient method for isolation of turkey PGC; (3) demonstration that PGC can be cryopreserved, recovered, and retain viability; (4) reinjection into embryos and detection of injected PGC. Primordial germ cells were identified using periodic acid-Schiff reagent and the immunological marker OLP-1. Bloodstream PGC were isolated using Ficoll density gradient centrifugation with PGC recovery peaking at stages 13, 14, and 15 with 32 ± 4.9, 33 ± 6.4, and 26 ± 5.4 PGC recovered, respectively. Primordial germ cells were frozen using Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium, 20% fetal calf serum, and 10% dimethylsulfoxide and demonstrated 90 ± 1.7% viability after 3 mo frozen in liquid nitrogen. Freshly isolated and frozen thawed DiI- and Q-Tracker-labeled PGC repopulated stage 30 gonads after vascular transfer into ex ovo cultured embryos. The DiI-labeled cells repopulated gonads less frequently, with 36 ± 13.2% of gonads containing the DiI-labeled PGC, and 7 ± 3.8% of reinjected PGC reaching the gonads of positive embryos. The Q-tracker-labeled cells were detected more frequently in embryos, with 67 ± 21.1% having positive signals, and 44 ± 4.9% of reinjected Q-tracker-labeled PGC colonized the gonads of positive embryos. This study demonstrated the feasibility of using turkey PGC to archive turkey germplasm from different strains because frozen PGC reintroduced into host embryos can colonize the host gonads, suggesting the possibility of producing turkey germline chimeras.