ABSTRACT
Over the past 20 years micromanipulation has increased in importance in the livestock and human assisted reproductive technologies (ART) laboratory. Applications of micromanipulation include embryo bisection for embryo twining,1 the production of chimeras to investigate cell fate and development,2 nuclear transfer to investigate nuclear equivalence,3 pronuclear DNA injection to establish transgenic animals,4 blastomere biopsy for the diagnosis of genetic disease and aneuploidy,5 intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) for the treatment of male infertility,6 and cytoplasmic transfer to investigate and improve embryo development.7,8 While all of these procedures have unique characteristics, they all share some fundamental components. This chapter attempts to provide some insights into the general principles of micromanipulation as recorded from my own experiences.
