Abstract: To develop a method of rabbit ESCs\|like (embryonic stem cells like) culture in vitro for obtaining the rabbit ESCs (embryonic stem cells) line in future, not only the rates of inner cell mass (ICM) proliferation, formation and positive alkaline phosphatase (AKP) of the primary rabbit ICM colonies from in vitro and in vivo were comparativly studied on different feeders, but also rabbit ESCs\|like were passage cultured separately on MEF feeder and REF feeder. The results showed that there were significantly higher rates of development and attachment of blastocyst from morula without zona pellucida than that with zona pellucida (P<0.05). The positive AKP rate of primary ICM colonies in ectogenesis blastula was significantly lower than that in vivo(P<0.05). Compared to MEF feeder group, the rate of primary colonies formation was lower remarkably on REF feeder (P >0.05), but the rate of positive AKP of the primary colonies was higher significantly than others (P<0.05). Although ESCs-like could be passage cultured on both of REF and MEF feeders, the rate of ESCs-like colonies formation following F3 in MEF feeder group was higher significantly than that in the REF feeder group (P<0.05)．

Key words: embryonic stem cells like (ESCs-like), inner cell mass (ICM), colonies, feeder, rabbit