Salvation of the cat s • ec1es

A ground-breaking discovery by an Indian researcher could mean saving the wildcat family from extinction

As rop predators, w ild ca ts may be at d1e pinnacle of the food chain; sadly they are Icings of the jungle no more Human monopoly, poaching and indiscriminate commerciali sation have invaded their territory, pushing the big cats co near extinction.

But Homo sapiens could well have a chance to atone for past mi srakes and re-establish a more sustainable planet, where aU creatures great and smaU co-exist 11aking a significant breakd1rough in the battle to save the endangered species, a new finding by an Indian researcher at Melbourne's Monash University has opened the door to conservatio n and regeneration.

32 yea r old Rajneesh Verma has successfully produced "embryonic stem-like ceUs" from the tissue of an adult snow Jeopard.

Ear tissue samples were coUected from a s110\\' leopard at New South Wales' Mogo Zoo and then manipulated to behave like embryonic ste m cells. These cells Gill now help scientiscs Lmde rscand the developmental bio logy of d1e creamre.

While d1is technique has been previous ly effective with m ice and white rhinos, this is the first time it is being employed for the cat fami ly.

Verma's findings are the culmination of a rum- year research project at i\fonash Institute of Medical Research (MlMR). The Indian PhD smdenc, who was superv ised by Dr Paul Verma, worked in conjunction with Associate Professor Peter Temple -Smid1 of Monash U niver sity's Department of Obstetrics and G ynaecology, as weU as Professor :Michael HoUand of the Uni versity of Queensland.

The pat:11- breaking results were recently published in Tberiogenolt!gy, an internationally acclaimed joumal for animal reproductive biologiscs

"Otherwise known as induced pluripotent stem ceUs (iPSC), tl1e technique can create any ceU in die body, including reproductive cells or gametes," an upbeat Verma tol d I11dia11 Liflk.

His breakthrough is particularly signi ficant due to the difficulty of obtaining gametes, even from animals in captivity. Previously, the only way to harves t ceUs was to tal{e embryonic stem ceUs from snow leopard embryos. For conservarionists, captive breeding and in vitcio- fertilisation are currently the only options; but besides being costly a nd painful.ly invasive, d1ey are plagued b y problems such as inbreeding and low fer tility.

"Once embryonic stem-like cells are created, tl1ey can be used as a donor celJ co increase the efficiency of cloning or can be mamred into eggs or sperm - making them essential building blocks for assisted reproductive technologies:' he further explained.

"The greatest advantage o f this technology is chat it is noninvasive. I know there is a lot of opposition to cloning and manipulating ilie environment. But if science can save some species from extinction, why not use it in a pos itive way," Verma added.

According ro Verma, tlus exciting new researcl1 on what has been dubbed as "potential test rube cubs" could also be extended to othe r th reatened species. Verma is already working to replicate Lus success with other wild cacs including tl1e Bengal tiger, serval a nd jaguar.

The Lucknow lad's obsession with wild cats goes a long way. "As a child growing up in India, I was always fascinated by these exotic species. I enjoyed going co the zoo and watching them, hoping co one day work with diem," he reminisced. And the fact d1at the ir numbers were rapidl y dwindling, spurred him co act

His only profess ional regret is the fact chat his research specimens are normaU y sedated. "l enjoy patting diem. U nfortunately, I can't p lay wid1 chem like one would with cats or dogs," he laments.

W h en his fan1ily migrated to Australia after !us HSC, Verma opted co pursue a degree in biotechnology In 2003, be joined ivfonash Univers ity working on bov ine cloning. Over the yea rs, he has diversified in aU d1e veterinary reproductive techniques, including IVF, stem cells and cloning

"To me, science is about always raking risks and entering Lmcharted territories wid1 the aim of finding answers and cutting edge technol ogies," said Verma

As a PhD student, Verma therefore was keen co sr.-irt research on die wildcat project even before the funding came through. ''For me, d1is project was au o pportunity to d o soruetlung for tl1e w ild cats, but something for India as weU, because tigets are such an integral part of Indian ethos," he seated.

"Fortunately, wid1 the support of Professor Bryan Williams, Directo r of Monash lnstinite of 1fedical Research, l received an instin1te scho larship to conduct chis exciting work and things fell into p lace," he continued.

Pro mpted by his recent breakthrough, Verma is already in talks wit:11 Indian conservation experts and forestry department officials, and hopes co one day establish a research centre for tl1e conservation of India's national animal.

"My research holds great potential for the Bengal tiger, to save tl1e species from decli1ung in numbers. HopefuUy some fruitful c<;>Uaboration c ould work our soon," he added.

"By generating seem cells we've taken the first s tep in creating reproductive cells from adult tissues of an endangered animal. ln the future, we ain1 to harness the potential of the iPS cells and create offspring. Tb.is would help save species from extinction," be concluded

However, as Lhe double edged sword of funding and ernics hangs over the issue, Verma admitted drnt d1e dream of breeding endangered species in labs using artificia l embryonic stem cells c<;>uld still be )'ears away.