Reviving the Bavarian Pine Vole: Integrating Advanced Reproductive Technologies for Conservation of a Critically Endangered Species

Bavarian Pine Vole

Establishing a self-sustaining colony for the critically endangered Bavarian Pine Vole using advanced stem cell and reproductive technologies as a conservation model for endangered species preservation.

The Bavarian Pine Vole, a small rodent living only in the alpine regions of Central Europe, is critically endangered. Once thought to be extinct, the species today has fewer than 50 mature individuals in isolated groups as it struggles with habitat loss, reproductive problems, and declining genetic diversity. Urgent conservation action is needed to halt and reverse this decline. This project leverages a cutting-edge team and an innovative strategy combining genetics, stem cell science, and reproductive biotechnology to restore a viable, genetically diverse, self-sustaining population of this rare species.

The first step is to create a complete map of the pine vole’s DNA. This genetic information will elucidate the health and diversity of the remaining individuals, guiding more effective conservation decisions. In addition, somatic cells and sperm from remaining voles will be collected and cryopreserved, creating a genetic safety net. These frozen cells will be reprogrammed into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) next.

Leveraging a strong partnership with a world-leading pioneer in in vitro gametogenesis, Professor Katsuhiko Hayashi, these iPSCs will be used to explore differentiation to germline stem cells with the aim of producing gametes (sperm and eggs). In parallel, iPSCs will be injected into tetraploid mouse embryos as part of standard laboratory stem cell validation for model species. Using this method, injected iPSCs proliferate and differentiate to form the entire embryo, demonstrating the capacity of stem cells to produce all tissues of an animal and indicating that they are, in fact, pluripotent. However, this method also provides an alternative, potentially more feasible, way to produce offspring from iPSCs. With this approach, we aim to demonstrate the world’s first proof-of-concept “stem cells-to-offspring” case study for an endangered species.