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Scientists at the Estonian University of Life Sciences have successfully created a horse cloned embryo. In Europe, only one company in Italy can perform a similar procedure, making the achievement of the Estonian University of Life Sciences highly significant.

Elina Tsopp, an embryologist at the Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science at the Estonian University of Life Sciences, stated that the first major step was the creation of the horse cloned embryo. "The next important moment will be in August when we will start transferring the cloned embryos into recipient mares," said Tsopp.

The cloning procedure conducted by the Estonian University of Life Sciences differs from previous methods in terms of the source of somatic cells—stem cells were used to produce the cloned embryos. "The horse being cloned is Wodan M, a stallion from Luunja Stud OÜ. He is a former competition stallion who is now of advanced age for a horse, at 21 years old. He is one of the best breeding stallions at Luunja Stud, having produced many excellent offspring. If everything goes well, we can expect the birth of cloned foals by the end of summer 2025," explained Elina Tsopp.

According to Tsopp, horse cloning is primarily necessary for the preservation of endangered horse breeds. "In Estonia, we have three endangered horse breeds: the Estonian horse, the Tori horse, and the Estonian heavy draft horse. In neighboring countries—Scandinavia and the Baltic states—there are dozens of endangered horse breeds. Horse cloning allows breeders to clone their elite horses, thereby reducing risks associated with horse breeding. It also enables the use of infertile or sterilized horses in breeding," added Tsopp.

In addition to cloning, the university is also involved in gene banking. "Over the past two years, we have collected and frozen skin cells, stem cells, and sperm from Estonian horses, Tori horses, and Estonian sport horses for future use in breeding. Our gene bank also includes many Latvian horse breeds, and there has been interest in this service from the Nordic countries as well. Therefore, we are able to offer highly advanced and internationally sought-after technologies and research and development services in our region," said Tsopp.

Last year, the embryo team at the Estonian University of Life Sciences successfully transferred a horse embryo created in vitro for the first time. The pregnancy has progressed successfully, and the birth of Estonia's first test-tube foal at Luunja Stud is expected by the end of this August.

The cloning team includes Elina Tsopp, Ants Kavak, Anni Viljaste-Seera, Andres Reilent, Felipe Corrêa, and Andrés Gambini (University of Queensland). The project partners are Luunja Stud OÜ, led by Sven Šoisi and Urmas Raag.