Join AETA and CETA/ACTE in the first annual AETA-CETA/ACTE Poster Session!

The 2019 AETA-CETA/ACTE Joint Annual Convention is now accepting abstract submissions for posters to be displayed at the Convention and published in the 2019 AETA-CETA/ACTE Annual Convention Program Book. You can submit your abstract here: https://www.fass-abstracts.org/meetinginfo.asp?meetingcode=277

Save this URL—bookmark the page today to access at a later date. And don’t forget to highlight August 9, 2019, on your calendars—the deadline for abstract submission.

All members, students included, of AETA and CETA/ACTE are encouraged to submit original research abstracts for poster presentation.

The AETA Research Committee will review all submissions and select abstracts to be presented as a poster from all submissions. Student members whose abstracts are accepted to present as a poster will receive free registration to the Annual Convention!

The AETA-CETA/ACTE Joint Annual Convention will be held at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort in Colorado Springs, Colorado. To book a room, call (800) 588-0250 or book online. Please refer to the room block name "AETA-CETA/ACTE Joint Convention" when making your reservation. This will ensure that you receive the proper meeting room rate. All reservations must be made no later than Monday, September 30, 2019.

Sincerely,
The American Embryo Transfer Association

Dr. Darrel DeGrofft elected to serve as Chairman of the U.S. Livestock Genetics Export, Inc. Board of Directors

Congratulations are in order to Dr. Darrel DeGrofft, co-owner of Colorado Genetics, and a past president of AETA. Darrel was recently elected to serve as Chairman of the U.S. Livestock Genetics Export, Inc. (USLGE) Board of Directors (BOD). DeGrofft has represented the American Embryo Transfer Association (AETA) at USLGE meetings since 2009 and has served on the USLGE BOD since 2010. As Chairman, DeGrofft looks forward to working with all 56 USLGE members, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and Dr. Martin Sieber the President/CEO of USLGE.

USLGE is a nonprofit, nationwide trade association that brings together a broad base of U.S. livestock organizations. They represent the international marketing interests of the dairy, beef, sheep, swine, horse, and small ruminant (sheep and goats) breeding industries. Their members also include the embryo and semen industries, livestock export sector, and State Departments of Agriculture. The USLGE staff and office are located in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin.

The AETA was a charter member of USLGE at its inception in 1990. Market development activities conducted by the AETA’s Cooperator Committee utilizes funding provided by FAS and administered by USLGE. Through his involvement with the committee, DeGrofft has travelled to China, Russia, Kazakhstan and Chile to promote U.S. genetics and embryo transfer technology. DeGrofft believes that embryos produced by AETA members are a cost effective and biosecure means of importing U.S. genetics into new and developing markets. Current countries of interest to the committee are Chile, Vietnam and Pakistan.

Thank you Darrel for your outstanding service, dedication, and contributions to the livestock genetic industry around the world!

Legality of Compounded Estradiol for Embryo Transfer

The AABP office has received questions from members regarding the legality of using compounded estradiol products in cattle for embryo transfer protocols. AABP has also been in discussion with the FDA about the use of compounded estradiol products in food animals. Compounding from approved drugs in animals is only permitted under the narrowly defined conditions outlined in AMDUCA (Section 21 CFR 530.13). To be permitted, extralabel use from compounding of approved animal drugs or approved human drugs must be in compliance with all relevant provisions of 21 CFR 530 (AMDUCA), including the provisions limiting extralabel use to treatment modalities when the health of an animal is threatened or suffering or death may result from failure to treat. The extralabel use regulation also does not provide for compounding from active pharmaceutical ingredients (API or bulk drugs, i.e., the raw chemical) for use in animals. Therefore, it is illegal for veterinarians to use or prescribe compounded estradiol for cattle or any form of estrogenic compounds for production purposes including embryo transfer and synchronization protocols. AABP encourages cattle veterinarians to refrain from administering or prescribing compounded estradiol for the following reasons:

• AMDUCA only allows for extralabel drug use when the health of an animal is threatened. There is no production allowance, particularly for compounding; therefore, one cannot use human-approved drugs (i.e., ECP, Pfizer) or a different form of an animal-approved drug (i.e., growth-promoting implants) for production purposes.
• Compounding from a bulk product is specifically prohibited in the AMDUCA regulations.
• The safety, potency, efficacy, stability, sterility, and disposition of compounded products is unknown. Compounded products do not undergo FDA inspection, potency testing, or efficacy testing. Veterinary compounding pharmacies that also compound for humans are under federal regulation and FDA inspected; however, this only applies to the human side of the compounding operation. Veterinary compounding pharmacies do not have this level of oversight. There is no guarantee of the safety or efficacy of compounded products and the liability for the use of such products falls on the veterinarian in the event of an adverse reaction or violative residue.
• Because the safety, efficacy, potency, and disposition of the compounded product is not known, it is impossible to assign a withdrawal interval for compounded products.
• The use of compounded products in food animals places a veterinarian at a risk of professional liability.

The need for estradiol for successful embryo transfer protocols has not been unequivocally established. For example, data from nearly 7,000 collections did not demonstrate a difference when using GnRH in place of estradiol in the protocol. Additional references are available on the Reproduction Committee page of the website. Veterinarians who engage in federally prohibited activities put themselves at risk and also risk the profession’s reputation for appropriate and judicious oversight of pharmaceutical products in our cattle patients. This is especially of concern when using an unapproved and illegally manufactured hormone product. AABP Newsletter 5 May 2019

Please contact the Fred Gingrich at fred@aabp.org with any questions.

AETA Video

Global Genetic Improvement Through Embryo Technology

Small Ruminant Embryo Transfer Training Video

Click the image below to watch the video (AETA members only). A DVD is available for purchase