ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: THE PRIVILEGED ROLE OF DOMESTIC SPECIES IN MAMMALIAN EMBRYOLOGY RESEARCH
In contrast to many other fi elds of science, domestic animal research has pioneered advancements in some fi elds of reproductive biology including embryology and cryopreservation. Besides the well-know achievements in somatic cell nuclear transfer (1,2), considerable successes have been achieved in cryopreservation of spermatozoa (3) and preimplantation stage embryos (4,5). These discoveries were often made in parallel with or even preceding those in experimental animals. These results have had enormous consequences both on the practical application (e.g., commercial artifi cial insemination and frozen embryo transfer in cattle) and on the advancement of research in other mammalian species including humans. Recent achievements in the establishment of new cryopreservation, embryo culture, and gender determination methods, as well as the impressive advancement in the fi eld of transgenic research, indicate that this positive trend will continue in the future.
