title: Simple sperm preservation by freeze-drying for conserving animal strains.
abstract: Freeze-drying spermatozoa is the ultimate method for the maintenance of animal strains, in that the gametes can be preserved for a long time in a refrigerator at 4 °C. Furthermore, it is possible to realize easy and safe transportation of spermatozoa at an ambient temperature that requires neither liquid nitrogen nor dry ice. Freeze-drying spermatozoa has been established as a new method for storing genetic resources instead of cryopreservation using liquid nitrogen. This chapter introduces our latest protocols for freeze-drying of mouse and rat spermatozoa, and the anticipated results of the fertilizing ability of these gametes following long-term preservation or transportation.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Laboratory Animals, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan, tkaneko@anim.med.kyoto-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Takehito
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kaneko
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005612:Freeze Drying / Q000379:methods*; D051379:Mice; D051381:Rats; D012662:Semen Preservation / Q000379:methods*