A method for determining the mated status of female fruit flies, focusing on determining the presence of spermatozoa in a sample fly's ventral receptacle (VR). The ventral receptacle is the organ where eggs become fertilized. The VR is the first and last organ in a mated female fly to contain spermatozoa. The VR is thus the most accurate organ for determining whether a female fruit fly has recently mated. The method is a squash method. The fly's ventral receptacle is isolated, and then squeezed so as to cause spermatozoa stored in the ventral receptacle to be released into the lumen of the VR. This permits use of a microscope to determine the presence or absence of spermatozoa in the female fruit fly, and thus the mated status of the female fruit fly.

A wireless terminal includes a pressure sensor, a wireless circuit, and a case accommodating the pressure sensor and the wireless circuit in a waterproof manner, and is left inside a stomach of a livestock animal to measure pressure inside the stomach and wirelessly transmit acquired pressure data. The case includes a cylindrical case body and a lid member closing an opening of the case body. The lid member has a measurement hole extending between inside and outside of the lid member and a protection wall part located outside of the case body. The measurement hole has a pressure-receiving pressure measurement part inside for measurement of the pressure and is closed. The measurement hole includes a first linear part and a second linear part intersecting in T shape with the first linear part, and has distal ends open to an outer face of the protection wall part.

It is an object to provide a technique useful for embryo transfer and development of reproductive medical care. Provided are a sperm activator containing a disrupted product of one or more cells selected from the group consisting of adipose tissue-derived stem cells, dental pulp-derived stem cells, bone marrow-derived stem cells, and umbilical cord blood-derived stem cells as an active ingredient, and an artificial insemination method utilizing the same.

A behavioral training aid comprising: (a) a body; (b) a tract including: (i) a tract locking mechanism that secures the tract to an outer surface of the body; and (ii) a tract insert removably attached to the tract locking mechanism; (c) one or more legs extending from the body; and (d) one or more base supports extending from a distal end of the one or more legs; wherein the tract insert is configured to receive a receptacle so that the receptacle is elongated and forms a depository within the body.

A behavioral training aid comprising: (a) a body; (b) a tract including: (i) a tract locking mechanism that secures the tract to an outer surface of the body; and (ii) a tract insert removably attached to the tract locking mechanism; (c) one or more legs extending from the body; and (d) one or more base supports extending from a distal end of the one or more legs; wherein the tract insert is configured to receive a receptacle so that the receptacle is elongated and forms a depository within the body.

The present invention relates to a method for promoting production of female embryos in fertilized eggs, comprising steps of: incubating said eggs; generating at least one type of energy with a predetermined energy profile; and simultaneously generating a pre-determined profile of a non-energy parameter by means of an energy generation device, applying both energy profile and the non-energy parameter to the eggs; and, collecting the eggs; wherein said method is non-toxic to the embryos, the application of both the energy profile and the non-energy parameter increases the fraction of females in the hatched chicks.

A method of artificially inseminating a hen includes the steps of securing a male bird, applying a semen extender liquid to a tip of a cloacal protuberance of the male bird, squeezing the cloacal protuberance to extract semen from the male bird into the semen extender liquid to form a mixture, applying a tip of a pipette to the mixture, drawing the mixture into the pipette, securing the hen, inserting the pipette into the hen's cloaca, and squeezing a bulb of the pipette to inject the mixture from the pipette into the cloaca. A holding device for restraining a bird during sperm collection and artificial insemination procedures has a base, an arm extending upward from the base, and an open-ended receptacle connected to the upper end of the arm. The holding device is useful in mitigating injury to the bird and the handler during the procedures.

The present invention relates to the production and culture of undifferentiated spermatogonial stem cells that can be maintained long term and are feeder free. The resultant feeder-free populations can be used in any of a number of protocols including the generation of progeny bulls. The present invention includes novel methods required for the successful enrichment of bovine spermatogonial stem cells, novel cell lines and other components used for the same, as well as the resultant stem cell compositions.

The present invention relates to the production and culture of undifferentiated spermatogonial stem cells that can be maintained long term and are feeder free. The resultant feeder-free populations can be used in any of a number of protocols including the generation of progeny bulls. The present invention includes novel methods required for the successful enrichment of bovine spermatogonial stem cells, novel cell lines and other components used for the same, as well as the resultant stem cell compositions.

The system comprises a straw and a liquid dilution medium. The straw comprises a tube (11) extending between a first end and a second end and comprises a gas-permeable, liquid-tight plug, said plug being arranged in the tube (11) in the vicinity of the first end of same and extending between a first end turned towards the first end of the tube (11) and a second end turned towards the second end of the tube (11). Said plug comprises an element (14) impregnated with a reagent (22) at least in the vicinity of a first end turned towards the second end of the tube (11). The liquid medium is provided to produce, by mixing, in predefined conditions, the liquid substance (21). The reagent (22) and the medium(27) are configured such that, when the substance (21) comes into contact with the first end of the impregnated element (14), it forms a hydrogel.