Keynote Speakers
Professor of Diabetes Endocrinology and Reproductive Biology, University of Dundee
Biography: Professor Barratt is Head of the Division of Post Graduate Medicine at the Medical School, Head of the Reproductive Medicine Group at the University of Dundee as well as a clinical scientist (Hon) with NHS Tayside. He graduated with an Honours degree in Zoology and then completed a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (University of Wales, Swansea). His PhD, also in Zoology, was under the supervision of Jack Cohen at the University of Birmingham. His formative post-doctoral studies and ART experience was gained at the University of Sheffield [with Ian Cooke] where they specialized in natural cycle IVF. From 1997-2005 he was the Scientific Director of the ART Centre at the Birmingham Women’s Hospital.Professor Barratt has been awarded a number of honours for outstanding contributions to the discipline e.g. Young Andrologist of the Year, the Professor Sir Robert Edwards keynote lecture at ESHRE. He was awarded a DSc from University of Birmingham and has a h index of 54 (Scopus 2021). Professor Barratt is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He is a regularly invited speaker at national and international scientific conferences/workshops. He was a member of the WHO Male Fertility Semen Analysis Taskforce (for both the 4th and 5th editions) and director of the WHO (2012-2017) Male Fertility Expert Working Group which devised a new system for the diagnosis and treatment of the infertile male. He was a member of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority for 6 years until 2009.Professor Barratt has been appointed to editorial board of WHO for development of new Semen Analysis manual (6th edition, publication date late 2021). He recently published the global WHO guidelines for semen reference ranges.He has been on the Editorial Board of Human Reproduction, Human Fertility, Biology of Reproduction, Human Reproduction Update, Journal of Andrology and was Editor-in-Chief of Molecular Human Reproduction from 2013-2018. Currently he is a member of the Editorial board of Physiological Reviews. Professor Barratt is coordinating the Global Initiative on Male Reproductive Health. His life's ambition is to see - live - Wales comprehensively beat the All Blacks.
Professor of Animal Reproduction, The University Of Sydney
Biography: Simon is recognised worldwide as an expert in livestock reproduction, artificial breeding and semen assessment. He has published over 100 journal articles and several book chapters on animal reproduction and trained over 3000 veterinary medicine, animal science and agriculture students in animal reproduction and surgical theriogenology. He is currently Professor of Animal Reproduction at The University of Sydney, Secretary General of the International Congress on Animal Reproduction, Director of The Reproduction Company Pty Ltd and an elected fellow of The Royal Society of New South Wales and the Society of Reproductive Biology.
Professor of Evolutionary Biology, The University of Western Australia
Biography: Jon is an evolutionary biologist whose recent research focuses on gamete-level sexual selection and how female reproductive fluids (FRF) influence fertilisation success and offspring fitness. His work uses broadcast-spawning marine invertebrates to understand how egg-derived chemical cues that attract sperm differentially bias fertilisation toward genetically compatible males. His latest research aims to understand the mechanisms that facilitate these differential interactions between sperm and FRF, which will lead to collaborative research on the possibilities of differential gene expression and haploid selection in ejaculates.
Postdoctoral Scientist, Institute of Reproductive Genetics
Biography: Leonie Herrmann is a biologist specializing in male reproductive health. She began her postdoctoral career in the field of human sperm physiology at the Centre of Reproductive Medicine and Andrology in Münster, Germany. She is currently a postdoctoral scientist in the group of Professor Frank Tüttelmann at the Institute of Reproductive Genetics at the University of Münster, where her research focuses on genes and molecular pathways essential for spermatogenesis, sperm morphology, and sperm motility. Her work aims to advance the understanding of the genetic basis of human male infertility.
Prof. Noritaka Hirohashi
PI, Shimane UniversityBiography: Noritaka Hirohashi is a PI at Shimane Univ. in Japan studying animal reproduction and sexual selection. He has been studying sperm acrosome reaction in sea urchins and mice. Currently, his focus is on squid biology, particularly exploring the evolution of sperm traits that are closely linked to male mating behaviors.
Dr. Polina Lishko
Professor of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University School of MedicineBiography: Polina V. Lishko, Ph.D., is a BJC Investigator and Professor of Cell Biology and Physiology at WashU School of Medicine. She earned her Ph.D. in Biophysics from the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in 2000, where she studied the molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration and memory. Dr. Lishko completed her postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School and Harvard University. There, she investigated the molecular mechanisms of vision in the lab of Dr. Arshavsky and later worked with Dr. Gaudet on the structure and function of mammalian TRPV channels—key sensors of pain and temperature. Her work led to the first structural description of the TRPV1 ankyrin repeat domain, shedding light on the channel’s regulatory mechanisms.From 2006 to 2011, Dr. Lishko was a researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, where she studied ion channels and transporters such as CatSper, Hv1, and UCP1, elucidating their roles in reproduction and thermogenesis. Her discoveries during this period revealed critical regulatory pathways for mammalian fertility.In 2012, she joined the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, as an Assistant Professor. There, she led pioneering research on sperm motility, fertility, contraception, and ovarian aging. After earning tenure, she expanded her work to encompass age-related disorders, including neurodegeneration and vision loss. Dr. Lishko joined WashU Medicine in 2023, where she continues to investigate ion channels at the intersection of reproduction, aging, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Dr. Irem Sepil
Royal Society Research Fellow, University of OxfordBiography: Irem is an evolutionary biologist interested in reproductive ageing, nongenetic parental effects, sexual selection, and life-history theory. Her postdoctoral research examined an overlooked aspect of male reproductive ageing: the decline in ejaculate performance with age. Now a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellow at the University of Oxford, she investigates how paternal age and diet affect offspring fitness. Using fruit flies, her group aims to reveal the ejaculate-mediated mechanisms linking paternal condition to offspring outcomes.
Prof. Gerhard van der Horst
Emeritus Professor, University of the Western CapeBiography: To follow
More speakers to be confirmed.
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As part of the organisation of this conference, the University of Birmingham is collecting income via registration fees and sponsorships on behalf of the Spermatology 2026 organising committee.
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