Business start-up award for physics biotech Dyneval

Congratulations to Dr Tiffany Wood and School start-up Dyneval who received an Institute of Physics Business Start-Up Award.

Dyneval received an Institute of Physics (IOP) Business Start-Up Award for developing an innovative analyser for the precise measurement of semen quality to improve the efficiency of livestock production.

The IOP Awards recognise the achievements of individuals and teams in all aspects of physics. The Business Start-Up Award celebrates young companies with a great business idea founded on a physics invention, with the potential for business growth and significant societal impact.

Dyneval was founded in April 2020, with the Dynescan Semen Analyser launched in the veterinary sector in 2022, providing the first quality control standard for semen quality assessment that can be used by anyone across the livestock production industry. 

The underlying technology is based on the application of advanced physics to extract parameters describing the swimming behaviour of microorganisms such as spermatozoa from the fluctuations in intensity of light passing through a sample.

The average UK dairy farmer is losing £37,000 per year due to the 20 per cent drop-in conception rates over the past 40 years. The Dynescan helps vets and farm technicians identify poorly motile and damaged semen before use and thereby improve conception rates to improve the profitability of farming while reducing the environmental impact of protein production from livestock.

Longer-term, the team at Dyneval plan to strengthen commercial opportunities and export abroad to generate new datasets concerning male livestock fertility at a global level to guide data-driven decisions for sustainable outcomes.