European countries are experiencing long–term downtrends in fertility and consequently ageing of their populations. Fertility rates are now below replacement levels (2.1 children per couple) in nearly all countries. Obviously, a decrease in natural population growth rate should be expected. These demographic trends are likely to impose very heavy penalties on the economies of European countries. In response to this plight, various governments have designed specific policy measures to raise the level of fertility so as to address the challenges that ageing populations present. From the debate, it appears that, the effectiveness of these policies somewhat have mixed outcomes. This signifies that, no single policy is likely to solve the problem. This calls for the effective combination of the various interventions. However, it is unlikely that, fertility rates will increase overnight. Somehow, governments could consider immigration of the right mix of personnel to keep the economy going until such a time that the natural population growth rate reaches the required level. However, immigration when not effectively managed could even create more problems than ageing and low fertility will do.

The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between fertility and protein pattern change using in vitro fertilization, analysis of sperm characteristics and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis in different pig types. In results, the viability and mitochondria integrity of sperm were higher significantly (p<0.05) but the portions of ac-rosome reaction was lower significantly (p<0.05) in Duroc and F1 (potbellied×PWG miniature pig) than PWG minia-ture. On in vitro fertilization to investigate fertility, the fertility of F1 semen war higher significantly (p<0.05) than in Duroc and PWG miniature pig. On the other hand, protein patterns showed similar function among the different boar semen. Especially, the heat shock 70 kDa 1-like and G patch domain-containing protein 4 were significantly (p<0.05) higher expressed in F1 than in Duroc and PWG miniature pig. The proteins associated with mitochondria in Duroc were significantly (p<0.05) higher expressed than in F1 and PWG miniature pig. The developmental rates to blastocyst stage of oocytes fertilized with sperm of F1 pig were significantly (p<0.05) higher than in PWG miniature pig. However, phosphoglycerate kinase 2 and zinc finger protein 431 were significantly (p<0.05) higher expressed in PWG miniature pig than in F1 and Duroc pigs. In conclusion, the results of the present study indicate that different proteins were expressed in different pig types, and were associated with a sperm functions and embryo develop-ment.

The main purpose of this study is to estimate the effect of adding Tea-N-Tris (TES) to the freezing buffer for miniature pig sperm. In particular, we attempted to identify the association between the MMPs expression and the fertility and viability of frozen sperm from each extender (LEY (Lactose Egg-Yolk), TLE (TES + LEY), TFGE (TES + Fructose + Glucose Egg-Yolk)). In accordance with this, Hypoosmotic Swelling Test (HOST) respond test was the lowest among sperms frozen in LEY while the highest HOST respond was observed among sperms frozen in TLE. Furthermore, we observed MMPs expression in all sperm groups, with pro-MMP showing lower expression than active MMPs. The expression of MMP-9 and MMP-2 was the highest in sperms frozen in LEY, Meanwhile, sperms from the TFGE and TLE group showed lower level of MMP-9 and MMP-2 expression in the order of TLE being the lowest. LEY group showed lower rate of blastocyst development than the TES supplement group, although the difference was not statistically significant. Meanwhile the rate of blastocyst development appeared similar when sperms from TLE and TFGE group were used for IVF. Together, these results indicate that adding Tea-N-Tris to the sperm freezing buffer only suppresses MMPs protein activation but also maximize in-vitro fertility, providing a means to improve the success rate in the in vitro manipulation of miniature pig sperm.

The objective of this study was to develop of semen transport system for cryopreservation and fertility in bull sperm. The ejaculated semen were diluted with Triladyl containing 20% egg-yolk for transportation. Diluted semen was transported by three methods that there were wrapping tissue (Tissue), sinking under 30℃ water (Water) and sinking between warm water and air (Air) methods. Semen was transported within 2 hours in 0.3℃. For this study, the freezing of diluted semen were added with Triladyl containing 20% egg-yolk. And frozen-thawed sperm were estimated with SYBR14/PI double stain for viability, FITC-PNA/PI double stain for acrosome reaction analysis and Rhodamine123 double stain for mitochondrial intact assessment. In results, live sperm (SYBR+/PI-) in Air treatment group (43.3±4.7%) was significantly (p<0.05) higher than other treatment groups (Tissue: 16.3±2.7% and Water: 27.5± 3.1%), dying sperm (SYBR+/PI+) in Air treatment group (55.6±4.7%) was significantly lower than other treatment groups (Tissue: 77.6±3.2% and Water: 67.6±3.3%) (p<0.05). Acrosome reaction in Air treatment group (0.2±0.1%) within live sperm (PI negative region) was significantly (p<0.05) lower than other treatment groups (Tissue: 0.7±0.2% and Water: 0.5±0.1%), the acrosome reaction in Air treatment group (28.6±2.8%) within all sperm also was significantly lower than other treatment groups (Tissue: 44.2±1.8% and Water: 36.2±2.0%) (p<0.05). And mitochondrial intact in Air treatment group within live (97.1±0.4%) and all (61.9±3.3%) sperm were significantly higher than other treatment groups (Tissue: 85.2±3.3%, Water: 87.8±2.9% within live sperm and Tissue: 49.28±3.7%, Water: 42.0±3.1% within all sperm) (p<0.05). Therefore, we suggest that transportation by sinking method between warm water and air was beneficial to improvement of fertility in frozen-thawed in bull semen.

This study investigated the effect of birth weight on the fertility of Holstein heifers. Growth parameter (body weight) was measured at birth. Calves were analyzed as three subgroups: low (L), average (A) and high (H) birth weight (BW) calves. LBW calves were born 10 kg lighter than HBW calves. Fertility data collected included age at first breeding (AFB), number of services per conception, pregnancy rate to first artificial insemination (AI), and age at first calving (AFC). Primiparous calves in HBW are smaller compared to multiparous cows (18.3% versus 48%). Although not significantly different, LBW offspring appeared to breed faster over the service period compared with the ABW offspring that bred three weeks later on the average. The mean pregnancy rate to first AI for LBW heifers was higher (60%) than ABW (48%) and HBW (45%). HBW cows required more services per conception (2.1) than the LBW (1.7) and ABW (1.9). There were significant differences (p<0.05) in age at first calving among the different calving birth weights. Smaller birth size did not have any subsequent adverse effects on fertility. HBW offspring were more likely or tend to have worse fertility parameters.

우리 사회는 고령사회와 더불어 출산률이 낮아지며 저출산 시대에 접어들고 있다. 이러한 저출산 시대에 다자녀 출산을 위한 발전방안을 살펴보고자 하는데 목적을 두었으며, 특히 여성의 관점에서 다자녀 출산을 위한 문제점을 살펴보고, 다자녀 출산을 위한 방향을 제시하고자 하였다. 저출산 시대의 문제점으로는 경제성장의 위축, 세대 간의 갈등 심화, 산업구조의 변화에 따른 고용 관계에 영향, 재정 및 산업구조의 영향, 복지부문에의 영향을 들 수 있다. 저출산 시대의 다자녀 출산을 위한 발전방향으로는 양성평등에 의한 인식 수준 개선, 실질적인 경제적 지원, 다양한 가족형태에 따른 지원 확대, 중앙정부와 지방자치단체와의 일관성 있는 정책이 제시되어야 할 것이다. 나아가 저출산을 극복하기 위한 정책은 현재의 국가발전 뿐만 아니라 중장기적으로 국가의 선진국으로의 도약을 위해서 반드시 개발․실행되어야 할 것이다. 저출산의 근본적 문제점을 분석하고 해결방안을 도출하기 위해서는 국가적 차원에서 보다 전문적인 기구를 설치하여 이를 통해 정책개발을 추진해 나가야 할 것이다.

A study was conducted on four crossbred bulls, used as artificial insemination (AI) sires, to correlate their semen quality with their non return rate (NRR). Semen was collected once a week via an artificial vagina, diluted in egg yolk-citrate and maintained at for three days. It was evaluated for sperm motility, viability, morphology immediately after collection and was examined daily for sperm motility, viability and morphology of acrosome, mid piece and tail for a total of three days. A total of 2016 cows were inseminated by two AI technicians. The proportions of sperm with normal heads were 83.4% (63.7~91.7%), the proportion of spermatozoa exhibiting normal morphology (acrosome, mid piece and tail), motility and viability were 89.2% (82.3~92.0%), 71.3% (61.7~75.0%) and 76.7% (65.7~85.0%), respectively in fresh ejaculates. Sperm motility and sperm viability was significantly ( <0.05) lower in Holstein-Friesian Local bull than in other bulls during all three days of storage. The overall NRR for four bulls was 82.7% (72.9-87.5%). Bulls with higher sperm motility, viability and normal morphology of spermatozoa of individual bull had significantly (each <0.05) higher NRR. The highest ( <0.01) NRR (87.5%) was observed in a Red Chittagong bull whose semen qualities were significantly ( <0.05) higher than Holstein-Friesian Local bull (NNR 72.9%). The results of the present study concluded that NRR at 56 days post AI is related to parameters of semen quality. Therefore, semen evaluation may allow the discarding of bulls with poor fertility in an AI program.

본 연구는 우간다 농경지의 토양비옥도와 소규모 영농형태에서의 양분균형을 검토하여, 농촌빈곤의 원인을 파악하고 그 해결방안을 제시하고자 하였다. 우간다 농촌의 소규모 농가의 현장조사 자료 및 관련 문헌의 연구결과를 인용하였다. 1. 우간다의 농경지 토양은 강산성이었고, 비옥도는 낮았다. 특히 인산함량이 낮았다. 2. 농경지의 양분균형은 모든 영농형태와 일부 바나나 단작을 제외한 기타 재배작물의 단작에서 양분부족을 나타내었다. 3. 현재의 우간다 농촌 빈곤율을 토양비옥도 측면에서 다음과 같이 설명할 수 있다. 즉, 토양침식 및 부적절한 토양 양분관리 → 양분유실 → 토양비옥도 저하 → 양분부족 → 작물생산성 저하 → 빈곤 율 증가로 나타낼 수 있다. 4. 농경지의 비옥도 개선은 토양생산성 유지와 향상에 중요한 요인이며, 농촌 빈곤을 감소시키는데 기여한다.

축산농가의 밭 사료포는 농가에 따라 다량의 축분을 시용하는 경우가 있어 농가마다 사료포장의 토양비옥도 차이가 컸다. 따라서 본 시험은 토양 유기물함량의 차이가 총체맥류의 생육 및 수량에 미치는 영향을 분석하여 토양비옥도에 따라 적합한 총체맥류를 선정코자 하였다. 가. 이삭수는 보통지 대비 비옥지에서 증가되는 비율은 삼한귀리> 청우밀> 곡우호밀> 영양보리> 신영트리티케일 순으로 높았고, 척박지에서 감소되는 비율은 영양보리> 곡우호밀 > 청우밀 > 신영트리

The prediction of male fertility is of paramount importance for breeding animal herds when artificial insemination is applied. While the male fertility assays provide valuable quantitative data, they yield limited information concerning the functional competence of the spermatozoa. The objective of this study was to standardize a method for predicting in vivo fertility in bulls using the capacitation status that was assessed by chlortetracycline (CTC) staining. To optimize the capacitation process, sperm were treated with various concentrations of heparin (0, 10, 20, 50, and 100 μg/mL) and incubated for 10, 20, and 30 min each at 39℃ in 5% CO2. We found that maximum capacitation condition obtained from 10 μg /mL heparin treated sperm cells for 20 min (p<0.05). Optimized methods were used to determine the fertility of 17 batches of frozen bull semen representing a wide range of field fertility levels as indicated by non-return rates (NRR) (35.29% 93.18%). There was no significant correlation between NRR and the percentage of capacitated spermatozoa (B type) and non-capacitated spermatozoa (F type). However, acrosome reacted spermatozoa (AR type) was significantly correlated with NRR (p<0.01). To determine the normal range for the AR type, lower limits of the AR (%) were established as 23% for low fertility (NRR < 75%) using receiver operating characteristic curve. The overall accuracy of the assay was 88.24% for low fertility, sensitivity and specificity were 81.82 and 100%, respectively. These results indicate that capacitation status as measure by CTC staining is a useful predictor of male fertility. Therefore, low and high fertility bulls can be identified primarily by the functional capacitation status.

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of semen extenders on the motility, viability and fertility in vitro of spermatozoa during storage of fresh boar semen diluted in different commercial extenders used for pig artificial insemination (AI). In this experiment, semen were diluted in Androhep plus, Beltsville Thawing Solution (BTS), Modena, Seminark and Vitasem LD. Five ejaculates were collected from three Duroc boars and sub-samples were diluted (30×106 spermatozoa/ml) in different extenders. Semen was stored at 17℃ for 10 days. Sperm motility and viability was assessed using Computer-Assisted Semen Analysis (CASA) and flow-cytometry on 1, 3, 5 and 10 day post collection. The motility of spermatozoa stored in different extenders was gradually decreased by increasing the duration of storage of semen. However, there was not significantly different in the sperm motility and viability among other extenders. On the other hand, the in vitro-matured oocytes were fertilized and cultured in vitro to assess the fertility of boar spermatozoa stored for 3 and 10 days in different extenders. The percentage of morula and blastocyst were taken as indicators of fertility in vitro of spermatozoa. Therefore, there were no differences in the rate of embryos developed to the molular and blastocyst stage. There were no differences in the motility and fertility in vitro among 5 kinds of commercial boar semen extenders.

The objective of this study was to evaluated the efficiency on sperm cryosurvival and ability of in vitro fertilization using Triladyl and Lactose Egg-Yolk(LEY) as extenders for cryopreservation of separated sperm by 65% percoll in miniature pig. Sperm viability was measured with SYBR-14/PI double stained sperm by flow cytometry. Ability on embryo cleavage rate and blastocyst development were observed by in vitro fertilization after frozen-thawing of sperm separated by 65% percoll. The experimental groups were designed that separated sperm by 65% percoll with Triladyl (ST) or LEY(SL) and unseparated sperm with Triladyl(UT) or LEY(UL) for cryopreservation. As a results, the viability was significantly(p<0.05) higher in ST(55.1%), SL(63.1%), UL(58.8%) than UT(38.2%) group. Sperm viability in SL(63.1%) group was significantly(p<0.05) higher than other experimental groups. On the other hand, embryo cleavage rate was significantly(p<0.05) higher in ST(79.1%), SL(83.2) than UT(74.1%) and UL(75.7%) groups at 96h after in vitro fertilization. Blastocyst development was also significantly(p<0.05) higher in ST(21.5%), SL(20.9%) than UT(17.0%) and UL (18.8%) groups. In conclusion, cryopreservation of miniature boar sperm separated by 65% percoll were beneficial to viability and capacity on in vitro fertilization.

This study was undertaken to determine whether the presence of fertility-associated antigen (FAA) in semen would influence semen characteristics and conception rate of artificial insemination in Hanwoo. The response to FAA of 36 heads of proven bull, 7 heads of young bull, and 27 heads of performance-tested bull was that one proven bull was FAA-negative and the others were FAA-positive, therefore FAA-negative bull was 1.4%. FAA-negative bull was lower in first and second semen concentrations than those of FAA-positive bull in 5,301 semen of 21 heads of proven bull, then FAA-negative bull was fewer as 11.5% in total sperm counts. The estrus of 22 heads was 70d-nonreturned in 36 cows first inseminated with frozen semen of FAA-negative bull, but that of 249 heads in 378 cows first inseminated with frozen semen of FAA-positive bull. Each conception rate was 61.1% and 65.9%, respectively. The difference of conception rates was 4.8%. These results indicate that the response of FAA to semen were influenced semen characteristics and conception rate of artificial insemination, but further investigations are needed to confirm the results.