Conference Programme
Wednesday 29th July
| Opening Reception | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Session | Location | |
| 16:00 - 17:00 | Registration | Atrium | |
| 17:00 - 17:30 | Introductory Address and Welcome to UOB Jackson Kirkman-Brown, University of Birmingham, UK | G03 | |
| 17:30 - 18:30 | Keynote Speaker: Thaddeus Mann Memorial Lecture Eduardo Roldán, CSIC, Spain | G03 | |
| 18:30 - 18:45 | Spermatology Then and Now Lars Björndahl, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden | G03 | |
| 18:45 - 21:00 | Welcome Reception with Drinks and Buffet | Atrium | |
Thursday 30th July - Spermatogenesis & Genetics
| Time | Session | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:00 - 9:00 | Registration and Refreshments | Atrium | |
| 9:00 - 9:45 | Keynote Speaker: Selfish Sperm Anne Goriely, University of Oxford, UK | G03 | |
| 9:45 - 10:15 | O1. Machine learning–driven morphometric analysis reveals when species-specific sperm form emerges during spermiogenesis Maria Teves, Virginia Commonwealth University, USA | G03 | |
| 10:15 - 10:45 | O2. Integrated metabolomic and RNA-seq analyses suggest a biosynthetic pathway for a sperm attractant in ascidians Manabu Yoshida, Kitazato University, Japan | G03 | |
| 10:45 - 11:15 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 11:15 - 12:00 | Keynote Speaker: When genetics fail sperm, identifying genes critical for sperm function Leonie Herrmann, Institute of Reproductive Genetics, Germany | G03 | |
| 12:00 - 12:30 | O3. Calcium-ion efflux maintains fertilizing potential of newt sperm during storage in the sperm reservoir Akihiko Watanabe, Yamagata University, Japan | G03 | |
| 12:30 - 14:15 | Lunch | Atrium | |
| 13:15 - 14:15 | Poster Presentations | G11 | |
| 14:15 - 15:00 | Keynote Speaker: Cryo-electron microscopy as a discovery tool in sperm biology Tzviya Zeev Ben Mordehai, Utrecht University, Netherlands | G03 | |
| 15:00 - 15:30 | O4. The spermatozoa centriole transmits a novel head kinking movement powered by tail beating Tomer Avidor-Reiss, University of Toledo, USA | G03 | |
| 15:30 - 16:00 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 16:00 - 16:45 | Keynote Speaker: Functional study of testis-specific genes in vivo and in vitro using agenome editing approach Masahito Ikawa, The University of Osaka, Japan | G03 | |
| 16:45 - 17:15 | O5. A multi-scale view of horse sperm function: From in vivo dynamics to fertility proteomic signatures Elie Barakat, INRAE, France | G03 | |
| 18:30 - 21:00 | Evening Meal - Indian Street Food | The Vale, Shackleton, Infusion Terrace |
|
Friday 31st July - Ejaculation, Delivery and the Fertilisation Environment
| Time | Session | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:30 - 9:00 | Registration and Refreshments | Atrium | |
| 9:00 - 9:45 | Keynote Speaker: Are your Sperm Sneaky? A Squid Story
Noritaka Hirohashi, Shimane University, Japan | G03 | |
| 9:45 - 10:15 | O6. Spermatozoa as in vitro toxicity model to
elucidate the effect of environmental contaminants Liana Maree, University of The Western Cape, South Africa | G03 | |
| 10:15 - 10:45 | O7. A multiparametric high-throughput imaging assay to resolve distinct acrosome reaction states in human sperm Analia Guadalupe Novero, University of Dundee, UK | G03 | |
| 10:45 - 11:15 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 11:15 - 12:00 | Keynote Speaker: Myths and Mysteries of human sperm functions Lars Björndahl, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden | G03 | |
| 12:00 - 12:30 | O8. Gallocatechin improves mitochondrial activity and motility of stored boar semen Barbora Klusackova, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague | G03 | |
| 12:30 - 14:15 | Lunch | Atrium | |
| 13:15 - 14:15 | Poster Presentations | G11 | |
| 14:15 - 15:00 | Keynote Speaker: Channels Maketh the Sperm (function)
Polina Lishko, Washington University School of Medicine, USA | G03 | |
| 15:00 - 15:30 | O9. Progesterone signalling in human sperm involves rapid changes in membrane potential that are controlled by an interplay of CatSper and Slo3 channels Christoph Brenker, University of Münster, Germany | G03 | |
| 15:30 - 16:00 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 16:00 - 16:45 | Keynote Speaker: Gaining deeper insight from sperm analysis - quality, viscosity, and how the tail wags the head
Meurig Gallagher, University of Birmingham, UK | G03 | |
| 16:45 - 17:15 | O10. A novel regulator of sperm motility links mitochondrial dysfunction and ferroptosis Yingying Yin, Karolinska Institute, Sweden | G03 | |
| 19:00 - 21:00 | Evening Meal - BBQ | The Vale, Shackleton, Infusion Terrace |
|
Saturday 1st August - Sperm Function: To the oocyte and beyond
| Time | Session | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:30 - 9:00 | Registration and Refreshments | Atrium | |
| 9:00 - 9:45 | Keynote Speaker: A Billion Cells – Many Hundred Ways - Diversity Across Species Gerhard van der Horst, University of the Westen Cape, South Africa | G03 | |
| 9:45 - 10:15 | O11. Hanging in the balance: Understanding the
importance of sperm ROS for pre-implantation embryo development Joshua Deluao, Adelaide University, Australia | G03 | |
| 10:15 - 10:45 | O12. Exploring geographical differences in semen quality of young men using spatial dependance analysis Rita Rahban, University of Geneva, Switzerland | G03 | |
| 10:45 - 11:15 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 11:15 - 11:45 | O13. Ultra-rare sperm detection using an AI-enabled
microwell system Hadi Shafiee, Harvard Medical School, USA | G03 | |
| 11:45 - 12:15 | O14. The effect of combined cryoprotectant strategies
on the functional quality of post-thaw chicken sperm Azindokht Babapour, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Poland | G03 | |
| 12:15 - 14:15 | Lunch and Close of Exhibition | Atrium | |
| 14:15 - 15:00 | Keynote Speaker: Ocean Derived Chemicals in Mussels
Jonathan P. Evans, University of Western Australia, Australia | G03 | |
| 15:00 - 15:30 | O15. Towards semen collection at younger age:
non-invasive monitoring of puberty onset in young beef bulls at performance testing stations Joanna Bremer, University of Inland Norway, Norway | G03 | |
| 15:30 - 16:00 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 16:00 - 16:45 | Keynote Speaker: Sheep Sperm - Optimised Breeding and Key Mammalian Model Simon de Graaf, University of Sydney, Australia | G03 | |
| 18:30 - 22:00 | Conference Dinner | Edgbaston Park Hotel, Fry Suite |
|
Sunday 2nd August - Sperm: Tiny Cell - Big Picture
| Time | Session | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:15 - 9:45 | Registration and Refreshments | Atrium | |
| 9:45 - 10:30 | Keynote Speaker: Disentangling Paternal Effects, Sperm Quality and Aging
Irem Sepil, University of Oxford, UK | G03 | |
| 10:30 - 11:00 | Refreshment Break | Atrium | |
| 11:00 - 11:45 | Keynote Speaker: Contraception – New Perspectives Chris Barratt, University of Dundee, UK | G03 | |
| 11:45 - 12:00 | Spermatology in the Future | G03 | |
| 12:00 - 12:15 | Closing Ceremony
Jackson Kirkman-Brown & Meurig Gallagher, University of Birmingham, UK | G03 | |
| 12:15 - 13:15 | Packed Lunch to takeaway | Atrium | |
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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