Ultra rapid open pulled straw (OPS) vitrification is a perspective for freezing horse embryos

Abstract

International audienceThe aim of this research was to evaluate ultra rapid OPS vitrification on the embryo viability. The OPS vitrification technique is comprised of ultra rapid freezing of a small drop in which the embryo is placed. Before the thin straw was plunged into the liquid nitrogen, the embryos were treated with highly concentrated cryoprotectant (CPA) solutions as follows: 18% ethylene glycol (EG), 18% dimethyl-sulfoxide (DMSO) and 0.4 M sucrose. Surgical transfer into the recipient mares and morphologic examination of recollected embryos were used to measure the viability of transferred embryos. The research was performed on Welsh pony mares by collecting the embryos 6.75 days after ovulation. Twenty embryos were vitrified and transferred, four in each recipient mare. At day twelve, nine embryos were recollected after flushing of the recipient urterus (56%, 9/19). In one recipient mare, endometritis was detected when the uterus was flushed. Among the sixteen recollected embryos, seven (44%) had normal morphology and well developed embryonic vesicles. The vitrification procedure used proved to be encouraging