Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Sep 27;18(1):17-26.
doi: 10.1002/rmb2.12235. eCollection 2019 Jan.

Bovine sperm sex-selection technology in Japan

Yousuke Naniwa  1 , Yoshiya Sakamoto  1 , Syohei Toda  1 , Kyoko Uchiyama  1
Affiliations
Review

Bovine sperm sex-selection technology in Japan

Yousuke Naniwa et al. Reprod Med Biol. .

Abstract

Background: In Japan, Livestock Improvement Association of Japan started commercially producing sexed bovine semen 10 years ago, and sexed bovine semen is currently used for the artificial insemination (AI) in the farms. In this review, the authors introduce the technology for sperm sexing by flow cytometry, the efforts at commercializing sexed semen in Japan, and recent field data on artificial insemination of the cattle with sexed semen.

Methods: In the procedures of the flow cytometric method, X-chromosome-bearing sperm and Y-chromosome-bearing sperm were fluorescently stained, separated from each other by analyzing the difference in the DNA content, and cryopreserved. The authors surveyed the conception rates after AI with these sperm and sex ratios of the offspring with the cooperation from livestock associations, AI technicians, and farmers.

Main findings results: Although AI with sexed semen was associated with lower conception rates in comparison with AI with conventional semen, the accuracy of sex selection using AI with sexed semen was beyond >90%.

Conclusion: Sexed semen produced by flow cytometry has the potential to produce offspring of the preferred sex with high accuracy and reliability. Thus, it is expected that sexed semen is used for AI more frequently in the farms.

Keywords: artificial insemination; cattle; sex selection; sexed semen; sexing technology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
X‐sperm sorting with a flow cytometer (the illustration was reused with the permission of Japanese Journal of Embryo Transfer63)
Figure 2
Figure 2
A bivariate histogram of 0º (foreword) and 90º (side) fluorescence obtained by the flow cytometer. The image shows populations of live‐oriented sperm, non‐oriented live sperm, and dead sperm. After gating for the live‐oriented, X‐sperm‐enriched (upper) and Y‐sperm‐enriched (lower) populations are further gated to sort the required sex
Figure 3
Figure 3
Conception rates (CR), delivery rates of normal calves (DR), and the sex ratio (SR) after artificial insemination with sexed semen and conventional semen from the same bulls and batches from 2001 to 2005 (the illustration was reused with the permission of Japanese Journal of Embryo Transfer63)
Figure 4
Figure 4
(A) The duration of gestation and (B) birthweight of calves after artificial insemination with sexed semen and conventional semen from the same bulls and batches from 2001 to 2005 (the illustration was reused with the permission of Japanese Journal of Embryo Transfer63)
Figure 5
Figure 5
The distribution ratios of sexed semen to conventional semen distributed by LIAJ (dairy breeds) from April to March of each year
Figure 6
Figure 6
The birth rates of female dairy calves in Hokkaido and the other prefectures of Japan from February to January each year (the illustration was reused with the permission of Japanese Journal of Embryo Transfer63)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Maaji SM, Ekele BA, Bello SO, Morhason‐Bello IO. Do women want disclosure of fetal gender during prenatal ultrasound scan? Ann Afr Med. 2010;9:11‐14. - PubMed
    1. Kooper AJ, Pieters JJ, Eggink AJ, et al. Why do parents prefer to know the fetal sex as part of invasive prenatal testing? ISRN Obstet Gynecol. 2012;2012:524537. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Okeke TC, Enwereji JO, Okoro OS, et al. Desire for prenatal gender disclosure among primigravidae in Enugu, Nigeria. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2015;9:429‐433. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Larsson M, Berglund M, Jarl E, Tyden T. Do pregnant women want to know the sex of the expected child at routine ultrasound and are they interested in sex selection? Ups J Med Sci. 2018;1‐6. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mori T, Watanabe H. Ethical considerations on indications for gender selection in Japan. J Assist Reprod Genet. 2002;19:420‐425. - PMC - PubMed