“We need a way to reduce our reliance on surgeons and allow ordinary people to give injections that prevent cats from reproducing,” said William Swanson, study co-author and wildlife veterinarian at the Cincinnati Zoo.
Overcrowded shelters also lead to higher euthanasia rates, Levy told Atlantic’s Katherine J. Wu.
investigation method
In the study, female cats received injections into their thigh muscles.
The injection creates virus cells in which the disease-causing part has been removed.
Inside the cell is genetic material.
According to New Scientist, the DNA instructs the cat’s muscles to produce a protein called anti-Müllerian hormone at 100 to 1,000 times normal levels.
This hormone prevents the ovaries from maturing and releasing eggs.
To test whether the injection was effective, the researchers conducted two four-month mating trials that began eight and 20 months after treatment.
They placed 9 cats in a pre-mating group with a male and recorded videos to document the mating interactions.
In both tests, all three cats in the control group became pregnant and gave birth to healthy kittens.
According to the New York Times, of the six cats that were vaccinated, two mated with males, but none became pregnant.
“This could be really game-changing if we get it as good as we hope we can be,” Swanson told National Geographic.
However, Daniela Chavez, a feline reproductive biologist at Towson University who was not involved in the study, told The Atlantic that the results should be considered early on.
More research — with larger groups of cats — is needed to determine if the treatment is safe, how long it lasts, and how effective it is.
