SERRAKIT PROJECT: DEVELOPMENT OF A SERRATIA DETECTION KIT IN PORCINE EJACULATES AND SEMINAL DOSES

At Semen Cardona we are participating in the Serrakit project, which aims to develop a kit for detecting Serratia in seminal doses with high sensitivity, efficiency and low cost, which can be quickly applied for the early detection of contamination of the doses.

In pig production, Serratia marcescens is one of the main species that appears as a contaminating bacteria in ejaculates. The problem is that this bacteria can be spermicidal when the semen is stored in seminal doses at 15-18 ºC for several days, which are the usual storage conditions for these doses. At present there is no rapid test that can evaluate these doses and detect the problem in time. Therefore, the development of a method for detecting Serratia marcescens in ejaculates/seminal doses that is fast and at an effective cost would allow reducing the direct problems caused by this bacteria in the doses, as well as the potential problems derived from them.

The project has a budget of €356,931.00 and is supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, CDTI Innovation and the European Union.

Duration of the project: 10/2022 – 03/2025

Beneficiary: Semen Cardona SL

Budget: €356,931.00

CDTI contribution: €303,391.35

FEDER aid: €137,897.84