Test tube Vechur calf born after storing embryo at -196 degree deep freeze

KOLLAM: The state’s veterinary scientists’ experiments have led to the birth of a test tube calf, after storing the embryo in -196 degree deep freeze. The embryo was from a Vechur cow. The bull calf, which reached its full growth in nine months is called ‘Abhimanyu’.

Though test tube experiments in Vechur cows were done before, this is the first time an experiment involving an embryo kept in the deep freeze is being used. The significance of deep freeze is that the embryo can be stored for a long period.

The experiment was led by veterinary scientists, Dr. J Anoop, Dr. Avinash, Dr. Praveen, and Dr. Ramesh and conducted at the Kerala Livestock Development Board’s center at Mattupetty. The egg from the Vechur cow and the sperm from a Vechur bull were collected in the lab’s glass plate and grown into an embryo.

After one and a half months in deep freeze, the embryo was instilled in the womb of a hybrid cow. The method used was similar to what is used in human test tube babies, which is In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) technology.

Out of the four embryos put in the wombs of cows, only one was successful. The bull calf weighs 13 kg at birth.