January 13, 2010

US grant advances frozen boar semen use

A US$900,000 grant from the USDA will help researchers at the University of Illinois (UoI) advance the knowledge and practical use of frozen boar semen in swine herds across the country.

Under the project entitled, "Advancing Technology for Practical Use of Cryopreserved Boar Sperm to Improve Opportunities for Profitable Pork Production," collaborators will examine how US pork producers can make genetic progress and improve biosecurity measures through the use of frozen boar semen.

The project is funded by an Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Researchers said the first aim of this project is to use multivariate analysis to identify in-vitro fertility of cryopreserved boar sperm. The second aim is to identify methods that maintain fertility when inseminating reduced numbers of valuable frozen sperm.

Meanwhile, researchers hope to provide practical educational tools that help producers make decisions regarding the use of frozen boar semen for genetic advancement, productivity, and disease protection in domestic or international markets.

Nearly all US commercial pork producers use artificial insemination (AI) - a major transition from a very low percentage using AI in the early 1990s to nearly 100% today.

Because of this, Rob Knox, an associate professor at the UoI and swine reproductive extension specialist, began questioning US breeding systems from semen fertility to disease to AI timing in an attempt to figure out how to help pork operations achieve even higher efficiency.

"The US pork industry relies on liquid semen with a shelf life of only five days," Knox said. "AI is performed using three billion sperm in multiple inseminations with pooled semen from multiple boars. This methodology, while successful at minimising infertility from poor quality semen, increases the risk for disease transmission and reduces the potential for genetic advancement by diluting semen from sires with superior traits."

The research team suggests that the use of frozen semen can help improve rates of genetic progress, improve profitability, and protect herds against disease, making pork operations more efficient and cost-effective.