CRB-Anim

Scientific productions

Results and scientific advances

Animal biology research has a growing need for BRCs to optimize the use of samples.

 The BRC-Anim network has increased its members' collections of animal biological resources by 72% with two objectives:
 - the preservation of biodiversity and genomic characterization of populations and models, for agronomic and biomedical research.

 - Its web portal is the one-stop shop for access to the collections.

Since 2013, CRB-Anim has collected 140,850 samples of 19 domestic animal species.
In 2016, CRB-Anim has enlarged its perimeter by integrating the tropical CRB 'Carare' located in Guadeloupe. Two BRCs have been certified for the NFS 96-900 standard.
The comparative analysis of operating costs was undertaken with the different BRCs in order to prepare the economic model of the infrastructure.
Technological developments continued on seed fertility prediction, development of new cryopreservation protocols and improvement of somatic cell reprogramming mechanisms, with several international publications and commercialization leads.
The year 2016 saw a major effort on the BRC information system with the preparation of the web portal that will be the single window for requests for entry or exit of samples for all domestic animal species. This portal was launched in May 2017 and contributes to the information system of the European IMAGE project.
The evolution of the Nagoya protocol regulations is a constant concern of CRB-Anim's partners and is integrated into the operation of the portal.

Several examples of work have been supported by CRB-Anim for a range of species: mammals, birds, fish.

CRB-Anim has launched a call for tenders to support the characterization of its collections: 13 projects concerning 8 species (cattle, sheep, pigs, dogs, cats, trout, perch, chicken) have been supported for a total budget of 510 k€ over 2017-2018.
CRB-Anim has enabled the development of new methods in reproductive biotechnology for cattle and chicken, and is now preparing the sustainability of its organization beyond 2022 with different actions:

  •     foresight and scientific watch,
  •     training,
  •     scientific and economic partnership.

The dynamics launched enabled France to coordinate the European H2020 IMAGE project (2016-2020) and facilitated France's acquisition of the secretariat of the FAO focal point on animal genetic resources.

The long-term preservation of animal genetic and reproductive collections is a major tool for maintaining genetic diversity.

CRB-Anim was a pilot project to group together all the agronomic CRBs (animal, plant, forest, micro-organism, environment) in the national RARe infrastructure of which it is now the animal pillar. Included in the national roadmap since 2016, RARe allows a sustainable and transversal strategic reflection on the perspectives of valorization of agronomic resources. RARe will contribute to the Global Genome Biodiversity Network to facilitate access to information on biological resources for research.
In this broad context, CRB-Anim also integrates the ethical and social issues raised by the conservation of biodiversity at different scales.

In this rubric

While bull semen is a widely distributed product in the artificial insemination market, there is little data on DNA methylation in bovine sperm. However, the sperm methyloma is the result of epigenetic reprogramming that began as early as fetal life, and plays an essential role in the compaction of chromatin and the protection of the paternal genetic heritage.
INRA B. Pain
Stem cells produced in vitro by somatic reprogramming from ruminant cells.
INRA
To maintain the biodiversity of a given species, it is essential to develop cryopreservation techniques to conserve the genetic resources of that species in the long term. This can be done by storing embryos, male or female gametes, or somatic tissues.
@Anais Vitorino Carvalho
Numerous markers are available to assess male fertility in birds, opening new perspectives in agronomic research and conservation biology. New molecular approaches are being developed to better characterize spermatozoa, with the hope of discovering new tools to assess individual fertility. Research on male fertility is also of interest in a very specific field: cryopreservation, a process that allows cells to be preserved at very low temperatures.
Photo de Vlad Chețan provenant de Pexels
In humans, mucosal melanoma (MM) is a rare and aggressive cancer. The canine model is frequently and spontaneously affected by MM, facilitating sample collection and study of its genetic basis. Through integrative genomic and transcriptomic analysis of 32 canine MM samples, we identified two molecular subgroups of MM with different microenvironment and structural variant (SV) content.
@Photothéque INRAE
The objective of this study was to review the quality management procedures of livestock gene banks around the world to identify the general strengths and weaknesses of quality control.
Scientific communities share resources to optimise research efforts and standardise protocols. CRB-Anim has contributed to the establishment of a tissue bank for the international consortium "Functional Annotation of Animal Genomes" (FAANG). A perfect illustration of the biobank concept for domestic animal genomics research.
@M. Tixier-Boichard Photothéque INRAE
Improvements in ex situ storage of genetic and reproductive materials offer an alternative for endangered livestock breed conservation, but collections should be optimized cost-effectively to avoid duplication, and with reference to the sustainability of in situ breeds.
@ Anaïs Vitorino Carvalho
Fertility of meat-type roosters could be predicted by protein biomarkers in spermatozoa.
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Modification date : 05 October 2023 | Publication date : 24 April 2013 | Redactor : CRB-Anim - Edition P. Huan