Frontiers in Veterinary Science (May 2022)
Ethical Analysis of the Application of Assisted Reproduction Technologies in Biodiversity Conservation and the Case of White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) Ovum Pick-Up Procedures
- Pierfrancesco Biasetti,
- Pierfrancesco Biasetti,
- Thomas B. Hildebrandt,
- Thomas B. Hildebrandt,
- Frank Göritz,
- Robert Hermes,
- Susanne Holtze,
- Cesare Galli,
- Giovanna Lazzari,
- Silvia Colleoni,
- Ilaria Pollastri,
- Ilaria Pollastri,
- Maria Michela Spiriti,
- Maria Michela Spiriti,
- Jan Stejskal,
- Steven Seet,
- Jan Zwilling,
- Stephen Ngulu,
- Samuel Mutisya,
- Linus Kariuki,
- Isaac Lokolool,
- Patrick Omondo,
- David Ndeereh,
- Barbara de Mori,
- Barbara de Mori
Affiliations
- Pierfrancesco Biasetti
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Pierfrancesco Biasetti
- Ethics Laboratory for Veterinary Medicine, Conservation, and Animal Welfare, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
- Thomas B. Hildebrandt
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Thomas B. Hildebrandt
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany
- Frank Göritz
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Robert Hermes
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Susanne Holtze
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Cesare Galli
- Avantea, Laboratory of Reproductive Technologies, Cremona, Italy
- Giovanna Lazzari
- Avantea, Laboratory of Reproductive Technologies, Cremona, Italy
- Silvia Colleoni
- Avantea, Laboratory of Reproductive Technologies, Cremona, Italy
- Ilaria Pollastri
- Ethics Laboratory for Veterinary Medicine, Conservation, and Animal Welfare, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
- Ilaria Pollastri
- Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padua, Legnaro, Italy
- Maria Michela Spiriti
- Ethics Laboratory for Veterinary Medicine, Conservation, and Animal Welfare, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
- Maria Michela Spiriti
- Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padua, Legnaro, Italy
- Jan Stejskal
- ZOO Dvůr Králové, Dvůr Králové nad Labem, Czechia
- Steven Seet
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Jan Zwilling
- Department of Reproduction Management, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Stephen Ngulu
- Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy, Nanyuki, Kenya
- Samuel Mutisya
- Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy, Nanyuki, Kenya
- Linus Kariuki
- Kenya Wildlife Service, Nairobi, Kenya
- Isaac Lokolool
- Kenya Wildlife Service, Nairobi, Kenya
- Patrick Omondo
- Kenya Wildlife Service, Nairobi, Kenya
- David Ndeereh
- Kenya Wildlife Service, Nairobi, Kenya
- Barbara de Mori
- Ethics Laboratory for Veterinary Medicine, Conservation, and Animal Welfare, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
- Barbara de Mori
- Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padua, Legnaro, Italy
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2022.831675
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 9
Abstract
Originally applied on domestic and lab animals, assisted reproduction technologies (ARTs) have also found application in conservation breeding programs, where they can make the genetic management of populations more efficient, and increase the number of individuals per generation. However, their application in wildlife conservation opens up new ethical scenarios that have not yet been fully explored. This study presents a frame for the ethical analysis of the application of ART procedures in conservation based on the Ethical Matrix (EM), and discusses a specific case study—ovum pick-up (OPU) procedures performed in the current conservation efforts for the northern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum cottoni)—providing a template for the assessment of ART procedures in projects involving other endangered species.
Keywords
- assisted reproduction technologies (ART)
- ethical analysis
- white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum)
- biodiversity conservation
- Ethical Matrix
- ovum pick-up
