Elephant, okapi and giraffe dung from Chester Zoo is being used to harvest living animal cells - offering a lifeline to species on the brink. 

Oxford University researchers have revealed they are trialling new techniques to isolate, wash and culture living cells to store them for conservation purposes.

Professor Suzannah Williams set up the "Poo Zoo" last year with funding from conservation non-profit, Revive and Restore. 

Her team includes Dr Rhiannon Bolton, who is carrying out research on dung donated by animals in the care of Chester Zoo.

Rhiannon, a researcher based at the zoo, said: "If this works, it could be a total game-changer."

Dr Rhiannon Bolton is carrying out research on animal dung (Image via: Chester Zoo)

Current UK veterinary guidelines mean you can only collect genetic samples in very specific circumstances, or following death, which limits the samples you can collect.

She added: "It's early days yet but this would allow us to collect cells from a far broader range of animals than we currently can.

"It would make collecting and storing living animal cells non-invasive, cost-effective and efficient."

Chester Zoo is contributing various samples to the project - including dung from elephants, giraffes, okapis, and lion scat.

Rhiannon said: "The keepers and scientists at the zoo pick up samples left in animal habitats.

"Because these are new techniques, we're trying to collect the freshest samples possible, so I'll get a delivery to the zoo lab, which is processed here."

Clean cells are then posted to Oxford on the same day, where they are cultured by research assistant Janet Kwan. 

Faecal matter is processed to strip away anything left by the animal's diet or bacteria (Image via: Chester Zoo)

Faecal matter is processed to strip away anything left by the animal's diet or bacteria, allowing scientists to separate out living cells from the donor animal, which can then be extracted and cultured. 

These living cells have the potential to be used to create stem cells further down the line. Stem cells in turn could become sperm and egg cells, which would be used in conservation breeding.

Dr Sue Walker, head of science at Chester Zoo, said: "Faecal testing is integrated into the daily care of our animal species. We use it to monitor the reproductive and overall health of the animals.

"Our established endocrinology techniques focus on monitoring hormones.

"Each test gives us a snapshot of their health status. Put together over time, the data gives us a fuller understanding of them during their lifetime.

"In contrast, the poo zoo is about the future. In this case, we are collecting for cells rather than hormones.

"The goal is to bank them so they can be used to prevent extinctions."