Hyderabad: Researchers at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, as part of snow leopard conservation, are helping Forest officials to identify healthy males and females for breeding.
CCMB had collected blood samples of snow leopards from the Darjeeling Zoo and conducted genetic studies. Based on these studies, healthy animals were recommended for selective conservation breeding and exchange among several Indian zoos. Snow leopard is listed as an endangered specie in the IUCN Red List as its population is declining due to loss of prey, poaching and threats. At LACONES, a project of CCMB, the researchers had collected DNA samples of around 225 species of mammals, birds and reptiles in 2015.
Cyropreservation of reproductive organs like testis of mandrill, chimpanzee and marmoset was taken up which will pave way for cryobanking of endangered species.
CCMB researcher Mr Sandeep Goel and his team are working on the process of cryopreservation of the testicular tissue of endangered animal and retrieval of spermatozoa from them. Meanwhile, evolution studies by CCMB have also found that South Indian snakes (vipers) have more similarities with species from South East Asia than the species of the North East.
