What we do - animals

AI Port – Ambient temperature semen transport device for artificial insemination in animals

Memphasys is developing a system to store and transport semen for artificial insemination (AI) at ambient temperatures for up to 3 days.

The global AI market is large and extensively used in cattle, pigs, sheep and horses. Semen for AI is usually frozen so that it can be kept indefinitely and transported long distances for remote insemination. However, freezing is very destructive to sperm, particularly to horse sperm. Pig sperm cannot be frozen.

A long-life semen storage and transport device would allow fresh semen to be shipped for AI with consequent benefits:

• Improving AI success rates
• Enabling AI semen straws to be loaded with fewer, more reproductively viable, sperm

Field trials in 2022 will be focussed on meat and dairy cattle breeds. High quality sperm will be separated on site from fresh bull semen and shipped at ambient (i.e., average 22°C ) for up to 3 days in a proprietary medium to remote farms for loading into straws for artificial insemination in the cows.

If these trials are successful, the sperm separation system and the transport media will be modified and trialled in other animal species.

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between reactive oxygen species and antioxidant protection within the body. This imbalance tends to increase with age and can contribute to serious diseases. Oxidative stress can also severely affect fertility in both humans and animals.

At present, there is no simple clinical assessment for oxidative stress. Rather, complex laboratory tests and analyses are required and therefore, not often used. Memphasys is developing a rapid, accurate point of care diagnostic commercial device. The RoXsta diagnostic device is initially being investigated for application for bodily fluids (i.e., semen, blood and follicular fluid) for use in the IVF clinic and physician rooms.

The RoXsta diagnostic device will utilise a novel biochemistry-based assay. Subject to successful optimisation and validation, the RoXsta prototype device will be field tested with selected international key opinion leaders to demonstrate efficacy and determine market opportunities.