Successful Laparoscopic Oviductal Artificial Insemination in the Endangered Tsushima Leopard Cat ( Prionailurus bengalensis euptilurus )

• Published in: Animals (Basel) Vol. 12; no. 6; p. 777
• Main Authors: Azumano, Akinori, Ueda, Miya, Nomura, Mika, Usui, Masashi, Ichinose, Midori, Yanagawa, Yojiro, Kusuda, Satoshi, Matsumoto, Yuki, Murata, Koichi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 19.03.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Animals; Aquariums; Artificial insemination; Breeding; Captive breeding; Catheters; Cats; Chorionic gonadotropin; Conservation; Endangered & extinct species; Environmental degradation; equine chorionic gonadotropin; ex situ conservation; Feces; Females; Fetuses; Genetic diversity; Gonadotropins; Intubation; laparoscopic oviductal artificial insemination; Laparoscopy; Luteinizing hormone; Males; Medical research; Motility; Ovaries; Oviduct; Ovulation; Pituitary (anterior); porcine luteinizing hormone; Prionailurus bengalensis; Prionailurus bengalensis euptilurus; Radiography; Reproduction (biology); Reproductive technology; Species diversity; Sperm; Spermatozoa; Traffic accidents; Traffic accidents & safety; Tsushima leopard cat; Vagina; Wildlife conservation; Zoo animals; Japan; Germany; Tsushima leopard cat; equine chorionic gonadotropin; porcine luteinizing hormone; laparoscopic oviductal artificial insemination; ex situ conservation
• ISSN: 2076-2615; 2076-2615
• DOI: 10.3390/ani12060777

The Tsushima leopard cat ( ) is an endangered wild felid that lives solely on Tsushima Island, Nagasaki, Japan. Japan's Ministry of the Environment is working with the Japanese Association of Zoo and Aquariums for ex situ conservation of this species. However, considering genetic diversity, it is difficult to conduct captive breeding programs by natural breeding alone; hence, assisted reproductive technologies are required. This study aimed to breed Tsushima leopard cats, which otherwise cannot be paired, using laparoscopic oviductal artificial insemination (AI). Female Tsushima leopard cats (female 1, aged 7 years; female 2, aged 6 years) were treated with 200 IU equine chorionic gonadotropin, followed by administration of 1000 IU porcine luteinizing hormone (pLH) after 96 h to induce ovulation. Laparoscopic AI was performed 32 h post-pLH administration. Females 1 and 2 were inseminated in the oviduct with 2.4 × 10⁶ and 3.3 × 10⁶ motile spermatozoa, respectively, collected from two males. Pregnancy was confirmed by radiography 45 and 51 days post-AI in females 1 and 2, respectively; one fetus was found in female 2. Moreover, female 2 had spontaneous delivery of a female kitten 66 days post-AI. This is the first successful case of AI in a Tsushima leopard cat.