About Us

Boviteq® California’s goal is to bring Boviteq’s world leadership in embryo transfer and IVF technologies to the West Coast’s dairy and beef producers.

Bringing the world-class research of Boviteq to California

Boviteq offers:

25 years of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) experience
70,000+ embryos produced in 2019
Industry leadership in reproductive technologies
State-of-the-art laboratories in Wisconsin and Quebec

Our Team

Dr. Ramon Tosta, DVM

Veterinarian

Dr. Tosta performs all OPU and ET techniques, and oversees the health and well-being of all donor animals. As a DVM, Dr Tosta has conducted OPUs on more than 5000 animals, run thousands of ETs and has extensive work in R&D. Dr. Tosta is an American Embryo Transfer (AETA) member, maintaining the high industry standards as a Certified ET Practicioner. Born and raised on a Brazilian beef ranch, Dr. Tosta, developed a love of animals and decided to study veterinary medicine. An internship brought him to the US where he worked for seven years with assisted reproductive technologies.

Lais Coelho

embryologist

Dr. Coelho has seven years of experience in embryology, cell culture and R&D. Coelho is responsible for the handling, searching and freezing of embryos. Coelho works closely with Dr. Tosta to ensure our lab’s biosecurity and quality control. A native of Brazil, Dr. Coelho was born and raised on a beef ranch, leading her to fall in love with veterinary medicine and acquire her DVM at the Unified Institute of Higher Education Objectivo in Brazil.

Andreanne Descoteaux

OPU Coordinator

Andreanne graduated from Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec as a Vet Technician in 2015. As an intern with Semex partner-owner, CIAQ, she honed her animal care skills, working in the semen production facilities. Upon graduation, she accepted a position at Boviteq’s lab in Canada, specializing in IVF protocols, assisting OPUs, embryo transfers and research projects. Additionally, she was a Vet Coordinator, following donor production, pregnancy rates, reports and communication to the lab. Recently, she moved to California to serve as our OPU Coordinator, working as the conduit between our clients and the laboratory.

Peter Cipponeri

General Manager

Dr. Shantille Kruse, Ph.D.

IVF Program Liaison

As the IVF Program Liaison, Dr. Shantille Kruse is responsible for veterinary collaboration and technical inquiry related to OPU/IVF services.

Shantille was raised on a diversified sheep and cattle operation near Tecumseh, Nebraska. Being actively involved in the livestock industry since childhood was extremely influential on her career ambitions of serving the cattle industry and its stakeholders. She earned her B.S. in Animal Science from the University of Nebraska, followed by her M.S. in Biomedical Science at the Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology Lab at Colorado State University. There her research focused on improving cryopreservation techniques for both in vivo- and in vitro- produced bovine embryos.

Dr. Kruse then earned her Ph.D. in Reproductive Physiology from the University of Minnesota while utilizing OPU/IVF technologies and embryo recovery and transfer to study the impacts of nutrition on oocyte quality, uterine function and early embryonic development.

Dr. Christian Vigneault, Ph.D.

Director, Reproductive Research & Development

Christian Vigneault, Semex’s Director, Reproductive R&D, obtained a BSc in Biochemistry at Laval University in 2001, followed by his MSc and PhD in Animal Science specializing in gene expression in bovine in vitro produced embryos.

He began an industrial postdoctoral internship at Boviteq in 2007, with the goal of creating a new IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) system to produce freezable IVF bovine embryos. Following the successful implementation of that new IVF system, he was hired into a research and development position at Boviteq, working on the development of a suite of media that would allow for the movement of oocytes and embryos through couriers.

This research allowed Boviteq to expand activities through satellite locations in Canada in 2012. In 2013, Christian moved to Madison, Wisconsin to launch Boviteq in the US. He returned to Canada to supervise Semex’s Research & Development Team and was been assigned to lead the semen research in 2014.

Christian also led a team that researched, investigated and diagnosed Semex’s fertility position in 2016, leading to the Fertility First protocols and campaign that launched in 2018. His current position as Director, Reproductive R&D, specializes in ensuring each department within Semex’s laboratory and research teams are working in harmony and reaching their absolute fullest potential.