Minitube Satellite Symposium at the Sinsui-Conference in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
On May 18, 2010, Minitube hosted a symposium on swine reproductive technologies at the Sinsui-Conference which was organized by the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The symposium was moderated by porcine reproduction specialist, Dr. Isabel Scheid from Brazil and was comprised of five international speakers which captivated an audience of more than 250 people.
Dr. Christian Simmet of Minitüb opened the lecture series introducing the Minitube group and their latest research developments. Progress in the development of a novel semen sexing technology was highlighted among several other interesting projects. The first of five lectures which followed the opening speech was given by Prof. Charlie Weitze from the University of Hannover, Germany on the selection and training of young boars.
The second lecture topic focused on the importance of hygiene in the semen production laboratory and was given by Prof. Dr. Dagmar Waberski. The presentation underlined the importance of finding and eliminating the source of bacterial contamination in semen rather than experimenting with ever changing antibiotic combinations. Prof. Dr. Waberski demonstrated the improvement that finding the source of contamination can have on boar stud operation through results achieved in both research and practice.
The third lecture was given by Mr. Phil Burke, Swine Technology Specialist, of Minitube of America, in the afternoon of the symposium. This discussion focused on the history of semen production in North America and the development of state of the art breeding techniques that are being implemented in the industry today. Mr. Burke offered a breadth of knowledge which he articulated using practical information and many interesting facts to provide constructive consultation to the Brazilian practitioners in the audience.
Prof. Charlie Weitze also gave the fourth lecture which reviewed findings of laboratory and field testing of Minitube boar semen extenders. The extenders that were presented contain cold shock protection, CSP, a proprietary additive that protects the sperm cell membrane by increasing the stability of the membrane within a wider temperature range than the current industry standard. The presentation also covered the advantage of using innovative extenders that protect semen in harsh storage conditions where temperature fluctuations are common.
The final lecture was given by Dr. Alexandre Marchetti, a veterinarian from Minitub do Brasil. This lecture concentrated on the techniques, challenges and failures associated with the purification of water used in the preparation of boar semen extenders.
The afternoon concluded with a question and answer session for participants to address the symposium speakers. The audience made vast use of this opportunity, discussing various topics regarding reproduction and artificial insemination.