Production of Germfree Mice by Embryo Transfer

Abstract

We applied the embryo transfer technique to germfree (GF) mouse production. Embryos harvested from superovulated mice were transferred aseptically, in a sterile environment, to the uterus of GF recipient females which had been mated with vasectomized GF males. One of the recipients became pregnant and delivered offspring. Sterility tests confirmed that the vasectomized males, newborns, recipient female mice, embryo-containing culture media, and the inside of the vinyl film isolator were germfree. These results suggest that the embryo transfer technique can be successfully applied to the production of GF mice.