18 P-ISSN: 2304-3075; E-ISSN: 2305-4360 International Journal of Veterinary Science www.ijvets.com; editor@ijvets.com Short Communication In Vitro Embryo Production in Indian Buffalo Eias Elzein, I Osman 1 , Sharma RK 2 and Majdi E Badawi 3 1 Department of clinical studies, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Nyala, Nyala- Sudan 2 Physiology and Reproduction Division, Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Hisar-125001, India 3 Department of medicine and animal surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, Sudan University of Sciences and Technology, Sudan *Corresponding author: eiasalzain66@yahoo.com Article History: Received: November 07, 2017 Revised: January 21, 2018 Accepted: January 23, 2018 ABSTRACT The embryo production is carried out through a combination of techniques of collection of immature oocytes, in vitro maturation (IVM), fertilization (IVF) and culture (IVC). Samples collected from slaughterhouse are the cheapest and the most abundant source of primary oocytes for large scale production of embryos through in vitro maturation (IVM) and in vitro fertilization. The culture medium and selection of protein supplements and hormones for IVM play an important role in the subsequent maturation rate, and embryonic development following IVF. The in vitro fertilization procedures in buffalo and requires appropriate preparation of sperm and oocyte, as well as culture conditions that are favorable to the metabolic activity of the male and female gametes. The presumptive zygotes are then cultured in vitro up to the blastocyst stage at which these could either be transferred to synchronized recipients for producing live offspring or cryopreserved for future use. Key words: Buffalo, Maturation, Fertilization, Embryo culture INTRODUCTION The buffaloes are in the order of Artiodactyla, the cloven-hooved mammals, genus Bubalus and species bubalis. Two main species of buffalo are found in the world: the Asiatic (water) buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) and the African buffalo (Syncerus caffer). The two buffalo types are having different habitats and chromosome numbers. There are about 170 million buffaloes in the world (Perera et al., 2005). Out of this 97 percent of them are water buffaloes and are mainly found in the Asian region. Riverine buffaloes are characterized by black colour and have long curled horns (e.g. Murrah Breed) and the Swamp buffaloes are dark grey, but may also be black, black and white, or even all white, have long, gently curved horns. Riverine buffaloes (70 percent of the total world population) are reared in high numbers in South Asia, especially in India and Pakistan. The name ‘swamp’ has probably arisen from their preference for wallowing in stagnant water pools and mud holes (Subasinghe et al., 1998). Swamp buffaloes are found mainly in southern China Sri Lanka, and the South-East Asia countries of Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Burma (Myanmar), Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia (Chantalakhana and Falvey, 1999). India has about 95 million buffalo’s represents 56.5 percent of the world buffalo population. India is the first country in the world for rearing buffalo's production (about 134 million tons of milk). India is also the first country in Asia for scientific and technological development in buffalo nutrition, production, reproduction, biotechnologies and genetic improvement. Moreover, India has implemented national programmes known green revolution ’’ for increasing crop production for animals, the "white revolution" for increasing milk productivity to satisfy human needs for animal proteins and finally the "red revolution" for increasing meat production and supporting meat industry, especially from buffalos. India possesses the best River milk breeds in Asia e.g. Murrah, Nili-Ravi, Surti and Jaffarabadi, which originated from the north-western states of India and have a high potential for milk and milk fat production in addition to use as a work animal and as a supplementary stock for meat production. The IVEP permits the preservation of genetic potential of sub-fertile or dead animals (Deuleuze et al., 2009) by the creation of a gene bank with oocytes recovered from slaughterhouses (Seidel and Seidel, 1989) for the improvement of livestock productivity. The purpose of this article is to summarize the steps of in vitro embryo production in Indian buffalo. Cite This Article as: Elzein E, I Osman, RK Sharma and ME Badawi, 2018. In vitro embryo production in Indian buffalo. Inter J Vet Sci, 7(1): 18-20. www.ijvets.com (©2018 IJVS. All rights reserved)