Carly Young, B.S.

Carly Young serves San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance as a Senior Research Associate in Reproductive Sciences. In this role, her efforts are focused on the development of assisted reproductive technologies for threatened and endangered wildlife species. Her work includes in vitro oocyte maturation, in vitro fertilization, intracytoplasmic sperm injection, in vitro embryo production, and analysis and cryopreservation of sperm, oocytes, embryos, and gonadal tissues in birds, reptiles, and mammals.

Carly’s current projects involve developing advanced embryo manipulation techniques to help save the northern white rhinoceros from going extinct. Her projects also include developing sperm cryopreservation protocols for the Argentine black and white tegu and Burmese python as models for endangered lizards and snakes. She also works to improve feline oocyte and embryo vitrification and to advance techniques to mammalian oocyte and embryo in vitro production.

Carly earned her bachelor’s degree in Animal Science at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo, with an emphasis in Reproductive Physiology. Carly’s research career started at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation, using her skills as an embryologist to develop disease models for drug discovery. Carly now uses her expertise as a microinjectionist to perform oocyte and embryo manipulation techniques to help save endangered species.