Small ruminant SexedULTRA™ sperm sex-sorting: Status report and recent developments

Flow cytometry sperm sex-sorting based on the relative DNA difference between X- and Y-chromosome bearing populations is an established method that has allowed the production of pre-sexed offspring in a multitude of species and has been a commercial success in cattle production for the past twenty years. Several improvements to the technology and the processing methods have increased the sorting efficiency of ejaculates and the post-thaw quality of sex-sorted sperm, allowing for the fertility gap between conventional (non-sorted) and SexedULTRA™ sex-sorted sperm to be bridged. Small ruminant industries are now progressively testing sex-sorted sperm for application in their specific niches and environments. A review of the key advances and the recent developments in caprine, ovine and cervine sperm sex-sorting technology are described in this publication.