Interview with Felipe Martínez Pastor (Bianor Biotech S.L.) in ASAJA Magazine

Firstly, what is Bianor’s role in the NeoGiANT project? 

• Bianor Biotech is a technology-based company focused on services and R&D in animal reproduction. Bianor participates in NeoGiANT tasks related to these lines of work. In this case, applying antimicrobial polyphenolic extracts for the development of antibiotic-free formulations in the field of semen extenders.

Which species are the potential end products of the project aimed at, in terms of assisted animal reproduction?

• Bianor coordinates a working group that is working on formulations for four groups of species. Bianor works with diluents for cattle, pigs and poultry (gallinaceous). Our collaborators from the University of South Bohemia are working on diluents for aquaculture, with sturgeon, carp and salmonids.

What kind of contributions do you hope to make?

• Bianor’s purpose in NeoGiANT is to provide formulations that enable the successful preservation of spermatozoa by refrigeration and cryopreservation. These formulations will prevent the proliferation of microorganisms in seminal doses without the need for antibiotics.

What do you consider to be the most relevant current problems in animal reproduction, in the field in which Bianor works, and to which the project aims to provide a solution?

• The problem that Bianor is tackling in NeoGiANT is the prophylactic use of antibiotics in seminal extender.
  Most current formulations use one or, more often, a combination of antibiotics to prevent microbial growth. This meets today’s stringent biosafety requirements (avoiding the transmission of bacterial diseases in semen doses) and prevents the damage that microorganisms could cause to spermatozoa and decrease their fertility.
• On the other hand, the continued use of antibiotics in semen doses is a constant source of contamination of the environment. On the one hand, after inseminating the female (in mammals and birds), a large part of the semen dose can flow back into the environment. On the other hand, the female’s own microbiota is directly exposed to the antibiotics in the semen dose (and this may occur several times during the lifetime of the female). In the case of externally fertilised animals (in aquaculture), any antibiotics that may be used with the semen end up in the farm water.
• Therefore, there is a potential contribution of assisted reproductive techniques to the problem of antibiotic resistance of micro-organisms. This situation has led to changes in EU regulations regarding the use of antibiotics in semen extenders, and a probable ban on their use.

As experts in assisted animal reproduction, what benefits do you think NeoGiANT extracts can bring to the different project species (cattle, poultry, pigs and aquaculture)?

The use of polyphenol-rich extracts in semen extenders has two immediate benefits:

• Inhibition of the growth of micro-organisms in semen doses without requiring antibiotics. Although resistance may occur, it will not be against antibiotics of medical or veterinary interest.
  The protective action of the extracts on spermatozoa. Because the extracts are potent antioxidants, the new formulations could have a positive effect on the shelf life and fertility of the semen doses, in addition to the antimicrobial action.