Study highlights new contraception for female cats
Eighty percent of the estimated 600 million domestic cats in the world are free roaming. These cats typically experience suboptimal welfare and inflict high levels of predation on wildlife. Additionally, euthanasia of healthy animals in overpopulated shelters raises ethical considerations.
While surgical sterilization is the mainstay of pet population control, there is a need for efficient, safe and cost-effective permanent contraception alternatives. In this study, researchers report evidence that a single intramuscular treatment with an adeno-associated viral vector delivering an anti-Müllerian hormone transgene produces long-term contraception in the domestic cat.
Researchers from the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden's Center for Endangered Wildlife Conservation and Research, Massachusetts General Hospital and the Horae Gene Therapy Center treated six cats with a single intramuscular injection of an adreno-associated viral gene therapy vector associated with a slightly altered version of the AMH (anti-Müllerian hormone) gene.
Treated females were followed for over two years, during which transgene expression, anti-transgene antibodies, and reproductive hormones were monitored. Mating behavior and reproductive success are measured during two mating studies.
Scientists found that ectopic expression of anti-Müllerian hormone does not impair sex steroids nor estrous cycling, but prevents breeding-induced ovulation, resulting in safe and durable contraception in the female domestic cat.
Dr. Gary Michelson, founder and co-chair of the Michelson Found Animals Foundation, said in a news release that a non-surgical sterilization method that helps improve animal welfare is long overdue.
"This groundbreaking discovery is an important milestone in our quest to provide pet owners with an alternative to surgical spaying and neutering," he said.
Over the last 15 years, the Michelson Prize & Grants program has funded 41 projects totaling more than $19 million in committed funds for this specific area of research.
This study was also covered in Portal Veterinaria.
Learn more about Michelson Found Animals.
Vansandt, L.M., Meinsohn, MC., Godin, P. et al. "Durable contraception in the female domestic cat using viral-vectored delivery of a feline anti-Müllerian hormone transgene." Nat Commun 14, 3140 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38721-0
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