SCIENCE CITY OF MUÑOZ, Nueva Ecija — The Department of Agriculture- Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) with funding support from the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) and PCC is now busy in a research project entitled "Cloning through somatic cell nuclear transfer as a tool for genetic improvement in water buffalos".

Described as the country’s first buffalo cloning R&D project and the first initiative of its kind in Southeast Asia, we may soon expect "super buffalos" as part of the country’s landscape soon.

Recently approved by the PCARRD governing council and launched last month, the project aims to develop a system for cloning through somatic cell nuclear transfer technology in water buffalo to produce "super buffalo calves".

Dr. Libertado Cruz, PCC executive director and project leader, said protocols on cloning techniques and freezing buffalo oocytes (female egg cells) are expected to be established, with about 1,000 buffalo clone embryos (fertilized eggs) produced in vitro (in the laboratory) and transferred to recipient animals.

Dr. Elaine F. Lanting, PCARRD Livestock Research Division Director, explained that "somatic cell nuclear transfer is a technique that involves the production of mature buffalo oocytes in vitro". He said that these oocytes will be enucleated (i.e., the nucleus will be removed) to become recipient cytoplasts.

"In turn, the recipient cytoplasts will receive nuclear materials derived from somatic cells, such as from the ear skin of the super buffalo, and will be cultured for six to seven days in vitro. The resulting embryos will be transferred to surrogate dams to produce clones of the super buffalo" Lanting said.

Dr. Cruz emphasized that in essence, there will be no modification or alteration of the genetic materials. "The project will merely allow the multiplication of the existing superior germplasms of the super buffalo" he added.