herd-farm-embryos-12.html
VikingNews UK 2018-02
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13 november 2018 | vikingnews viking
embryo
is the
embryo
breeding programme from vikinggenetics and
johanna
aro as programme coordinator has in-depth knowledge of all our three main breeds. et programme coordinator,
johanna
aro: ?with
embryo
s
you need a clear plan of how to work? w hen talking with
johanna
aro, you cannot skip
embryo
s
. this is what she does, and is her pas- sion.
johanna
is the person in charge of the em- bryo programme of vikinggenetics and was born in ostro- bothnia, on the west coast of finland where vikinggenetics? specialized lab for
embryo
is located. her parents had a herd of 20 cows, both ayrshire and hol- stein or friesian at that time. ?i worked on my parents? farm during my summer holidays, so i never had a problem find- ing a summer job,?
johanna
laughs. ?my dad also worked as an ai technician in the area and he used the best bulls in our herd from finland and abroad,? she continues. interest in cows must be in her genes. she studied agriculture at helsinki university and imme- diately knew she wanted to study breeding. not just any breeding, but cattle breeding. as a student, she also followed in her father?s footstep and worked as an ai technician.
johanna
was particularly interested in gene technology and biotechnology. the subject of her master?s thesis was gene mapping, bovine chromosome 19, that she did at mtt. around that time faba published the first articles on nucleus herds in its nauta magazine. ?that sounded interesting and i decided that this is what i would like to work with,? aro says. faba also started an eu-funded project with
embryo
marketing in ostrobothnia and aro was offered a job there. she was involved in producing the very first information package on
embryo
transfers that was then distributed around finland. she subsequently gained her dream job in the nucle - us herd as an
embryo
coordinator. the year was 1999 and the success story of finnish
embryo
transfers had begun, as did aro?s career as an ?
embryo
lady?. from asmo to viking
embryo
johanna
?s days are spent in cooperation with researchers considering what would be the best possible
embryo
pro - gramme. she oversees the number of heifers we have in hollola and product development of
embryo
s
. ?we also need recipient herds where we implant the
embryo
s
and we also need herds that can accommodate heifers after their
embryo
production career is over. i?m working on finding those herds too,? she says. together with other
embryo
and breeding experts, she works on product development. ?this way we can choose the best male
embryo
s
and avoid implanting only average ones. it is really streamlining the breeding programme,? she says. ?when we talk about
embryo
s
, we often talk about how many
embryo
s
we get or how good the donor is. we often forget the recipient. but recipients are also part of the efficiency equa - tion,? she adds. her big dream is a recipient herd that can receive many
embryo
s
and implant those soon after a flush. that is the way to get a better next generation. ?with
embryo
s
you need to have a clear plan of how to work ? try more than two. if you just buy two
embryo
s
, it is possible that you will end up with nothing. to get a real pic - ture of how to take your herd to the next level with
embryo
s
, you need to use enough,? she recommends. ?it is fascinating to work with
embryo
s
. people working with
embryo
s
are really into the subject and like to talk about this subject at all times, even outside work,?,
johanna
laughs.
johanna
aro is synonymeous with
embryo
s
in vikinggenetics. she is a key person in the viking
embryo
team.
genetic-disorders-breeding-14.html