In evolution, the red panda (Ailurus fulgens) plays a pivotal role in the higher level phylogeny of arctoides carnivore mammals. The red panda inhabits certain Asian countries only and its numbers are decreasing. Therefore, the development of feasible ways to preserve this species is necessary. Genetic resource cryopreservation and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) have been used extensively to rescue this endangered species. The present study describes the establishment, for the first time, of a red panda ear fibroblast cell line, which was then cryopreserved, thawed and cultured. Through micromanipulation, interspecies embryos were reconstructed using the cryopreserved–thawed fibroblasts of the red panda as the donor and rabbit oocytes as recipients. A total of 194 enucleated rabbit oocytes were reconstructed with red panda ear fibroblasts; enucleated oocytes were activated without fusion as the control. The results show that the fibroblast cell line was established successfully by tissue culture and then cryopreserved in liquid nitrogen. Supplementation with 20% fetal bovine serum and 8% dimethyl sulphoxide in basic medium facilitated the cryopreservation. The interspecies embryos were successfully reconstructed. The cleavage, morulae and blastocyst rates after in vitro culture were 71, 47 and 23% (31/194), respectively. This study indicated that a somatic cell line could be established and cryopreserved from red panda and that rabbit cytoplast supports mitotic cleavage of the red panda karyoplasts and is capable of reprogramming the nucleus to achieve blastocysts.

Cycle synchronization of donor cells in the G0/G1 stage is a crucial step for successful somatic cell nuclear transfer. In the present report, we evaluated the effects of contact inhibition, serum starvation and the reagents – dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO), roscovitine and cycloheximide (CHX) – on synchronization of canine fibroblasts at the G0/G1 stage. Ear fibroblast cells were collected from a beagle dog, placed into culture and used for analysis at passages three to eight. The population doubling time was 36.5 h. The proportion of G0/G1 cells was significantly increased by contact inhibition (77.1%) as compared with cycling cells (70.1%); however, extending the duration of culture did not induce further synchronization. After 24 h of serum starvation, cells were effectively synchronized at G0/G1 (77.1%). Although synchronization was further increased gradually after 24 h and even showed significant difference after 72 h (82.8%) of starvation, the proportion of dead cells also significantly increased after 24 h. The percentage of cells at the G0/G1 phase was increased (as compared with controls) after 72 h treatment with DMSO (76.1%) and after 48 h treatment with CHX (73.0%) or roscovitine (72.5%). However, the rate of cell death was increased after 24 and 72 h of treatment with DMSO and CHX, respectively. Thus, we recommend the use of roscovitine for cell cycle synchronization of canine ear fibroblasts as a preparatory step for SCNT.

The black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) is a critically endangered mammalian species, confined to a narrow region of south-eastern China. In the present study, the homogeneous ear fibroblast cells of a black muntjac were respectively cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM) (low glucose), DMEM (high glucose) and RPMI-1640. The population doubling time of subcultured cells was not significantly different between the three different media, but cell growth was greater in DMEM (low glucose). The interspecies embryos were reconstructed using the fibroblasts of black muntjac as donors and enucleated goat or rabbit oocytes as recipients and their blastocyst rates were 0 and 11.5%, respectively. The results demonstrated that the two cytoplasts could support reprogramming of the ear fibroblasts of black muntjac, but the developmental potential of the reconstructed embryos was different.