Latest news with #'spossums
CBS News
06-02-2025
- Science
- CBS News
First IVF kangaroo embryo claimed by Australia-based scientists
Australia-based scientists said Thursday they had produced the world's first kangaroo embryo through in vitro fertilization and hailed it as a key step towards saving endangered marsupials. The University of Queensland-led team said it employed the technique on eastern grey kangaroos -- which number in the millions -- with the aim of eventually using IVF for scarcer marsupials. "Australia is home to the greatest diversity of marsupial fauna on the planet but it also has the highest mammal extinction rate," lead researcher Andres Gambini said in a statement. "Our ultimate goal is to support the preservation of endangered marsupial species like koalas, Tasmanian devils, northern hairy-nosed wombats and Leadbeater's possums." Scientists produced the embryos by a technique that involves injecting a single sperm directly into a mature egg. "Because eastern grey kangaroos are overabundant, we collected their eggs and sperm for use as a model to adapt the embryo technologies already applied to domestic animals and humans," Gambini said. "We are now refining techniques to collect, culture and preserve marsupial eggs and sperm." With the right collaboration, funding and technical advancements, an IVF-assisted marsupial birth might be possible within a decade, the researcher said. Overall kangaroo numbers fluctuate between 30 million and 60 million in Australia, and they're frequently culled to keep populations in check. The animals have a "boom and bust" population cycle -- when food is plentiful following a good wet season, their numbers can balloon by tens of millions. But some other marsupial populations are far more precarious. It's estimated that there are only 20,000 to 50,000 Tasmanian devils in the wild, for example, down from as many as 150,000 before a mysterious facial tumor disease first struck in the mid-1990s. The kangaroo IVF research was published in the peer-reviewed journal Reproductive, Fertility and Development.
CNN
06-02-2025
- Science
- CNN
Scientists have produced a kangaroo embryo through IVF. It has sparked hope for marsupial conservation
Scientists in Australia have successfully produced the world's first kangaroo embryo through in vitro fertilization, or IVF, a feat they hailed as a 'ground-breaking achievement' that could one day help save endangered species. The research could be pivotal for Australia's conservation efforts, given the country's urgent need to protect its endemic species after having one of the world's worst extinction records. Australia has lost at least 33 mammal species since European settlement of the already inhabited continent, according to Australian non-profit Invasive Species Council, a higher rate of extinction than other continent on Earth in recent history. Scientists at the University of Queensland first assessed how kangaroo eggs and sperm developed in a laboratory, before injecting a single sperm directly into a mature egg, using a technique known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection, the university said Thursday. Andres Gambini, who led the research into the kangaroo embryo, said the technique could be applied to other animals under the threat of extinction. 'Our ultimate goal is to support the preservation of endangered marsupial species like koalas, Tasmanian devils, northern hairy-nosed wombats and Leadbeater's possums,' he said, referring to mammals that carry their young in pouches and are an iconic feature of Australia's unusual fauna. 'Access to marsupial tissues is challenging as they are less studied than domestic animals despite being iconic and integral to Australian biodiversity,' he added. In 2022, the Australian government announced a 10-year plan to eliminate further extinctions, which included efforts to conserve more than 30% of land mass and protect 110 priority species across the country. More than 2,200 species and ecosystems in Australia are classified as threatened with extinction, according to a 2023 report by non-profit Australian Conservation Foundation. CNN's Jay Ganglani contributed reporting.
CNN
06-02-2025
- Science
- CNN
Scientists have produced a kangaroo embryo through IVF. It has sparked hope for marsupial conservation
Scientists in Australia have successfully produced the world's first kangaroo embryo through in vitro fertilization, or IVF, a feat they hailed as a 'ground-breaking achievement' that could one day help save other endangered species. The research could be pivotal for Australia's conservation efforts, given the country's urgent need to protect its endemic species after having one of the world's worst extinction records. Australia has lost at least 33 mammal species since European settlement of the already inhabited continent, according to Australian non-profit Invasive Species Council, a higher rate of extinction than other continent on Earth in recent history. Scientists at the University of Queensland first assessed how kangaroo eggs and sperm developed in a laboratory, before injecting a single sperm directly into a mature egg, using a technique known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection, the university said Thursday. Andres Gambini, who led the research into the kangaroo embryo, said the technique could be applied to other animals under the threat of extinction. 'Our ultimate goal is to support the preservation of endangered marsupial species like koalas, Tasmanian devils, northern hairy-nosed wombats and Leadbeater's possums,' he said, referring to mammals that carry their young in pouches and are an iconic feature of Australia's unusual fauna. 'Access to marsupial tissues is challenging as they are less studied than domestic animals despite being iconic and integral to Australian biodiversity,' he added. In 2022, the Australian government announced a 10-year plan to eliminate further extinctions, which included efforts to conserve more than 30% of land mass and protect 110 priority species across the country. More than 2,200 species and ecosystems in Australia are classified as threatened with extinction, according to a 2023 report by non-profit Australian Conservation Foundation. CNN's Jay Ganglani contributed reporting.
