WHAT IS A QUALIFIED DONOR?

Donors must be physically mature enough for the technician
to perform the OPU procedure. Because our process does not
require hormone injections to set up donors for OPU, a qualified
donor can be any female in your herd, including heifers as
young as 6 months of age, open cows past 15 days postpartum
and pregnant animals up to 100 days of gestation.

DO I NEED TO SET UP MY DONOR PRIOR TO THE OPU?

There is no set-up required prior to our IVF process, as we do
not use follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) at any point. This
allows producers the opportunity to select any donor, at any
time, for IVF, while providing several benefits for the animal,
the product and your operation.
No hormones added here! Our IVF process is open to all organic
cattle operations.

CAN BRED DONORS GO THROUGH THE OPU PROCESS?

Our OPU procedure can be done as early as one week post
breeding and continue up to 100 days of gestation. Keep in
mind that the embryo is most susceptible to stress between
days 5 to 42. Stress from transportation is likely greater than
stress from the OPU process itself.

WHAT IS THE DURATION OF THE OPU PROCESS?

On average, OPU takes about 10 to 15 minutes per donor,
but varies by the amount of follicles.

HOW FREQUENTLY CAN OPU’S BE DONE?

Ovarian tissue is capable of extremely fast regeneration,
allowing safe collection from the same donor as soon as seven
days after the first collection. Work with a Vytelle technician to
customize an OPU schedule for each donor, dependent on
embryo needs. For best results, we recommend most donors
be aspirated every two weeks.

HOW MANY OOCYTES ARE COLLECTED ON AVERAGE?

On average, dairy cattle produce around 23 oocytes per OPU,
while beef cattle produce around 25 oocytes per OPU.

DOES THE DONOR’S AGE INFLUENCE THE NUMBER OF OOCYTES AND EMBRYOS PRODUCED?

Yes. Young and prepubertal donors can produce many oocytes,
although they typically have a lower embryonic conversion
rate. For mature cows, the oocyte to embryo conversion rate is
estimated to be around 25-30% (grade 1 embryos only).
Prepubertal females tend to have lower conversion rates,
around 15-20%.
We can collect from animals as young as 6 months of age, but
results tend to improve once a heifer reaches sexual maturity
or first heat.

IS THERE A DIFFERENCE IN THE NUMBER OF OOCYTES
HARVESTED WHEN FOLLICLE STIMULATING HORMONE
(FSH) IS NOT USED?

There is no difference in the number or quality of oocytes
collected, with or without the use of FSH. FSH simply increases
the follicle size; it does not increase the quantity of oocytes
available. Vytelle certified technicians are trained to aspirate
small follicles, which allows them to achieve consistent
collection rates, comparable to those animals given FSH.

AM I ABLE TO FERTILIZE WITH MULTIPLE SIRES FROM
ONE IVF COLLECTION?

Yes. If more than 30 oocytes are recovered from a donor, multiple
sires can be used to fertilize the oocytes.

WHEN WILL FINAL EMBRYO NUMBERS BE AVAILABLE
AFTER OPU?

Final embryo numbers are available 9 days after the OPU or 8
days after fertilization takes place.

CAN EMBRYOS BE EXPORTED?

Embryos can be exported, but if you plan to export your
embryos, please inform Vytelle prior to the OPU process as
every country has different requirements and factors involved.

HOW MANY STRAWS OF SEMEN ARE NEEDED TO
FERTILIZE OOCYTES?

The number of straws may change according to the total
number of oocytes collected from donors, and the semen
quality. We recommend sending two straws for each sire, along
with having a backup mating at the lab.
One straw of high-quality conventional semen fertilizes an average of
210 oocytes, and presorted fertilizes an average of 150 oocytes.
Two straws of semen is required for reverse sorting semen procedures.
Depending on the quality of the semen, it can fertilize 120-150 oocytes.

WHEN WILL SEMEN BE NEEDED?

Semen will be used the day after the OPU procedure. Semen must be at the lab at least 48 hours prior to OPU.  Please contact your local POWERED BY VYTELLE satellite manager for the lab address.

WHAT IS REVERSE SORTED SEMEN?

Reverse sorting technology sorts semen for a chosen gender
from a conventionally frozen semen straw. This is licensed and
operated by ST Genetics, and occurs during fertilization.
Because this process takes multiple hours per sample, we offer a
limited number of sorting spots each day. Please contact your local
POWERED BY VYTELLE satellite manager to discuss availability.

HOW ARE FRESH EMBRYOS TRANSPORTED TO THE FARM?

Fresh embryos are packaged in a portable straw incubator,
then driven and delivered by a Vytelle employee or a trusted
courier the morning of transfer. If the distance exceeds 7 hours
from the lab, embryos can leave the lab the day before the
transfer. Embryos should be transferred quickly after arriving.

WHEN DO MY RECIPIENTS NEED TO BE IN HEAT FOR IVF
EMBRYO TRANSFER?

Ensure your recipients have synchronized heats detected 7-8
days prior to the implantation date.
Consult your embryo transfer technician for protocol recommendations.

For fresh embryo transfer (ET), recipients need to be in heat
on the oocyte collection day and/or a day after the oocyte
collection day.

WHAT IS VYTELLE’S FROZEN EMBRYO PROCESS?

Embryos are frozen using the Direct Thaw (DT) method. This
makes it convenient for a trained embryo transfer technician to
efficiently implant the embryo without any unnecessary handling.

WHAT IS THE EXPECTED PREGNANCY RATE WITH IVF?

For frozen grade 1 embryos, expect a 45-50% pregnancy rate,
with frozen grade 2 embryos performing around 35-40%. For
fresh grade 1 embryos, expect 55-60% successful pregnancy
rate with fresh grade 2 embryos around 40-45%.
These averages vary depending on several factors including donor
management, recipient management and transfer technician.