Researchers at the University of Tokyo for the first time succeeded in obtaining mouse spermatozoa created from stem cells in the laboratory that were able to produce fertile offspring, that is, mice that have the ability to reproduce.

Germ cells, as the cells that give rise to sperm and eggs are called, had until then been produced only in mice. As reported in The New Scientist in 2011

And the result achieved is a great victory for scientists, as it opens up the possibility of adapting this approach to conservation of endangered rodent specimens or even in animal husbandry, as well as contributing to the future of human infertility treatment, obtaining artificial human sperm. .

Researcher Toshihiro Kobayashi and their colleagues from University of Tokyoexplained that they can now grow these germ cells in the lab by extracting stem cells from mouse embryos, and that when implanted in mouse testicles, spermatozoa are produced.

“Until recently, we didn’t know enough about how mouse germ cells develop to adapt the mouse procedure to mice. We now have a better understanding of what proteins and growth factors are needed to create mouse germ cells, so we can do the job,” says Kobayashi.

Fertility in humans and other mammals

Kobayashi He added that the team hopes to discover the general principles of sperm production that are used by rats and mice, as this way they can gain information to better understand how human germ cells develop and what goes wrong during this process to cause infertility.

By realizing this, they could create similar methods for use with other mammals and even humans.

“Human and non-human primates have different ways [desenvolvimento de células germinativas] and much longer development time. Therefore, generalizing the results to other species may not always be easy,” says Kotaro Sasaki of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

A team of researchers is currently working on getting eggs from mice, and if you’re still worried about the human problem. Embryonic stem cells cannot be taken from adult males, making this approach unfeasible.

To deal with this, one approach that has been tested is to turn adult skin or ovarian cells into stem cells that can be used to produce sperm and eggs.

Elon Musk in Brazil: everything you need to know
The richest man in the world promises the Internet to 19,000 Brazilian schools under an agreement with the government

…..

Thinking about buying goods online? Discover the Save the Connected World extension for Google Chrome. It’s free and offers you price comparisons at major stores and coupons so you can always buy at the best price. Download now.

Source: NewsScientist