Published: 2024-01-25 by, News Team in the Global news category

2 Northern White Rhino Remain - IVF Could Change That

The northern white rhino, teetering on the edge of extinction with only two surviving members, could find a lifeline through the groundbreaking success of the first-ever embryo transfer in white rhinos. Since the demise of the last male northern white rhino, Sudan, in 2018, the species faced imminent disappearance. The two remaining females, Fatu and Najin, both infertile, are vigilantly protected at a conservation reservation in Kenya.

A multinational team of scientists from BioRescue, a consortium supported by the German government to combat extinctions, achieved the groundbreaking procedure in southern white rhinos, opening the door for its application in the rarer northern counterparts. In September 2023, at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya, scientists successfully transferred two southern white rhino embryos into surrogates, resulting in a viable pregnancy. This method, commonly used in humans, horses, and cows, had never been applied to rhinos before.

While the father and the pregnant mother tragically succumbed to a rare bacterial infection unrelated to the procedure, the success of the pregnancy demonstrated the efficacy of the technique. Thomas Hildebrandt, the head of the BioRescue project, emphasized the significance of this achievement for the conservation of the northern white rhino.

By May or June of the current year, scientists plan to implant the first northern white rhino embryo. These embryos, created from the sperm of deceased males and eggs from Fatu, will be carried by a southern white rhino surrogate in Kenya. Stored in liquid nitrogen, only 30 embryos remain, a critical resource for the species.

If the 16-month pregnancy is successful, it will mark the first northern white rhino born since 2000 and potentially contribute to the conservation of the Sumatran rhino. Subsequent embryo transfers may lead to the birth of several northern white rhino calves, though genetic diversity remains a challenge. Researchers plan to explore gene editing to enhance genetic diversity, drawing from genetic material in museum samples.

Erustus Kanga, the director-general of Kenya Wildlife Service, expressed delight at the breakthrough, considering it a significant milestone in preserving the northern white rhino's genetic lineage. Justin Heath, the CEO of Ol Pejeta Conservancy, celebrated the achievement as a monumental breakthrough for conservationists, despite the bittersweet loss of the surrogate and bull to a bacterial infection.

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