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Chinese Livestock and Poultry Breeding ›› 2026, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (5): 88-95.doi: 10.19543/j.cnki.1673-4556.20260428.006cstr: 32418.14.j.cnki.1673-4556.20260428.006

• Animal Reproduction and Physiology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Advances in cryopreservation of porcine embryos

Zhiguo Liu1(), Lei Huang2, Yilong Wen1, Yulian Mu1()   

  1. 1.State Key Laboratory of Animal Biotech Breeding, Institute of Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100193
    2.Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory of Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Multi-omics of MARA, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, 518120, Guangdong
  • Received:2025-11-27 Online:2026-03-26 Published:2026-06-17
  • Contact: Yulian Mu E-mail:liuzhiguo@caas.cn;mouyulian@caas.cn

Abstract:

Porcine embryo cryopreservation technology serves as a key approach for the conservation and efficient utilization of pig germplasm resources, as well as for the creation of new gene-edited pig breeds. However, due to the high lipid content in porcine embryos and their extreme sensitivity to low temperatures, the post-thaw survival rate and subsequent developmental potential of cryopreserved embryos still lag significantly behind those of fresh embryos. A technical system capable of supporting large-scale applications has yet to be established. This article systematically introduces the importance of porcine embryo cryopreservation and the limitations of conventional slow-freezing methods. It focuses on discussing the current research status and main directions of vitrification cryopreservation technology, elaborating on recent advances in improving cryoprotectants and optimizing freezing protocols for porcine vitrification. Furthermore, it highlights the latest breakthroughs in using high-throughput sequencing technologies to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of cryo-induced damage in porcine embryos at the transcriptomic and proteomic levels. Finally, it proposes that future efforts should integrate artificial intelligence models, metabolic reprogramming, and automated loading devices to further enhance the developmental potential of cryopreserved embryos, thereby laying a solid foundation for the long-term preservation and industrial application of local pig genetic resources.

Key words: Porcine embryo, Embryo freezing, Vitrification

CLC Number: 

  • S828

Table 1

The survival rate of different cryopreservation methods on pig embryos"

胚胎Embryo冷冻方法Methods解冻存活率Survival rate移植产仔率Farrowing rate参考文献References
囊胚Blastocyst常规缓慢冷冻法31.0%±10.2%[1]
囊胚BlastocystOPS65%55%[18-20]

Table 2

Summary of embryo cryopreservation methods"

技术方案Methods

冷冻保护剂

Cryoprotective agent

操作步骤

Operation

参考文献

References

OPS

冷冻液1:TCM199+20% FBS+ 7.5% EG+7.5% DMSO

冷冻液2:TCM199+20% FBS + 18% EG + 18% DMSO + 0.6 M 蔗糖

(1)将收集到的体内或体外胚胎在TCM199+20% FBS液中清洗

(2)胚胎首先在冷冻液1中处理3 min

(3)将胚胎转入冷冻液2中

(4)在转入冷冻液2后的30 s内,将2~6枚胚胎吸入OPS管末端

(5)直接将OPS管插入液氮中保存

[18]
SOPS

冷冻液1:TCM199 HEPES+20% FBS +7.5% DMSO +7.5% EG

冷冻液2:TCM199 HEPES+20% FBS + 16% DMSO +16% EG+ 0.4 M 蔗糖

(1)将5~7枚胚胎置于冷冻液1中平衡3 min

(2)将胚胎转移至冷冻液2中处理1 min

(3)将胚胎置于小于1 μL 的冷冻液2液滴中,利用毛细作用装入SOPS细管

(4)立即将装有胚胎的细管水平插入液氮中

[21-22]
Cryotop

冷冻液1:TCM199+20% FBS + 10% EG + 10% DMSO

冷冻液2:TCM199+20% FBS + 20% EG + 20% DMSO + 0.5 M 蔗糖

(1)将胚胎放入冷冻液1处理30 s

(2)转入冷冻液2处理20 s

(3)使用极细的拉细玻璃管将胚胎吸出,以“点样”方式将胚胎和极少量的保护液(<0.1 μL)放置在Cryotop尼龙条的顶端

(4)迅速将尼龙条端直接浸入液氮中

(5)在液氮液面下为Cryotop套上专用的塑料保护外套,防止液氮流动引起胚胎脱落或污染

[37-40]

Fig. 1

The timeline of pig embryo cryopreservation technology"

Table 3

Comparison of different vitrification carrier"

载体

Carrier

冷却速度

Cooling rate/(℃·min-1)

装载体积

Loading volume/μL

特点

Features

参考文献References
传统细管Straw~2000250降温速率慢,易形成冰晶,猪囊胚冻融后的胚胎平均存活率在31%[1,7,21]
OPS>200001~2通过减小内径提升换热效率,猪胚胎解冻存活率显著提高[21]
SOPS~30000<1换热更快,但每次仅能装载4~6个胚胎[21,38]
Cryotop>40000<0.1换热效率极高,支持20枚胚胎同步冷冻[37-40]
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