Insights into the roles of sperm in animal cloning

Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) has shown a wide application in the generation of transgenic animals, protection of endangered animals, and therapeutic cloning. However, the efficiency of SCNT remains very low due to some poorly characterized key factors. Compared with fertilized embryos, somatic donor cells lack some important components of sperm, such as sperm small noncoding RNA (sncRNA) and proteins. Loss of these factors is considered an important reason for the abnormal development of SCNT embryo. This study focused on recent advances of SCNT and the roles of sperm in development. Sperm-derived factors play an important role in nucleus reprogramming and cytoskeleton remodeling during SCNT embryo development. Hence, considering the role of sperm may provide a new strategy for improving cloning efficiency.