Andrology SIG

The Andrology SIG has been an active participant at the annual CFAS meetings since its inception in 2008. The aim of the Andrology SIG is to promote the field of Andrology and disseminate the latest advances in this area to Canadian clinicians, scientists and allied professionals working in reproductive biology. The Andrology SIG also acts as a resource for Canadian health care professionals and promotes the exchange of ideas and information in this field. At the last three annual CFAS meetings, the Andrology and ART laboratory SIGs have held joint sessions at the ART Professionals day in order to enhance the educational experience and increase the profile of these two SIGs. Once again, the Andrology and ART laboratory SIGs will hold a joint session at the ART Professionals day at the upcoming CFAS meeting in Toronto (September 2016).

Membership Benefits

Joining the Andrology SIG gives you the opportunity to:

• Influence the direction of your profession in Canada
• Network with other Andrologists from across Canada
• Remain updated on the latest advances in Andrology

 

Sarah Kimmins, BSc, MSc, PhD - Chair

Dr. Kimmins received her Ph.D. from Dalhousie University in 2003 and completed her post-doctoral training at the Institut de Génétique etBiologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire in Strasbourg, France in 2005.  She was appointed to the Department of Animal Science in the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in September of 2005 and is a tenured Associate Professor. She is an associate member of the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine at McGill. She holds a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Epigenetics, Reproduction and Development and was the Associate Director for the McGill Center for the Study of Reproduction (2014-2017). In 2019 she received the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society exchange speaker award with the Society for the Study of Reproduction. In 2014 she received the Young Andrologist Award from the American Society of Andrology, and in 2016 the Society for the Study of Reproduction Young Investigator award. She is a frequent invited speaker with over 80 national and international presentations including the American Society for Andrology, Keystone Symposia, the Society for the Study of Reproduction and at the Gordon Research Conference series. She has served as a grant peer reviewer for CIHR, the National Institutes of Health (USA) and the Medical Research Council (United Kingdom) and is extensively involved in several international societies at the council and committee levels. She is an Associate editor for Biology of Reproduction and Environmental Health Perspectives. She was an elected council member for the Society for the Study of Reproduction (2016-2019).

Her research team is focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms underpinning epigenetic inheritance. Particular interest is given to paternal health and how environmental exposures (diet, BMI, toxicants) alter fertility, clinical outcomes, the sperm epigenome, development and health of offspring. Based on mechanistic studies in mice and translational studies in men they are developing new interventions and technologies to optimize fertility and to diagnose and treat infertility in men. In the long-term they aim to improve the pre-conception health of men and children.

Sergey I. Moskovtsev MD, PhD - Vice-Chair

Sergey I. Moskovtsev MD, PhD is the Director of Andrology at the CReATe Fertility Clinic in Toronto, Canada. He was trained as a research physician in his native Russia followed by postdoctoral fellowship and at the Division of Andrology, Department of Urology, University of Utah and a three-year research fellowship at the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. He received an appointment in 2010 as Assistant Professor with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. He has recently served for three years as Chairman of the Andrology Special Interest Group and Advisory Council of Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society (CFAS).

Sergey’s research interest is idiopathic male infertility; sperm DNA damage, telomere length and epigenetics of male infertility. He is involved in intensive research collaboration with several medical institutions across North America. His research has resulted in a number of peer reviewed papers, presentations at national and international meetings and several grants including CIHR.

Sonja Swanson - BScH, MBS - Secretary Treasurer

Sonja is currently the Clinic Manager and Andrologist at KARMA IVF in Waterloo, ON. She has a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biomedical Science and a Masters of Biomedical Science with a specialization in Reproductive Biotechnology, both received from the University of Guelph. She has been performing Andrology in clinical practice for over 10 years. Sonja takes great pride in helping patients build their families and advocates for increased funding, inclusion, and access to fertility care. She has co-authored many peer reviewed articles and presentations at meetings including CFAS and ASRM.

Sonja's research interests include understanding the social and emotional impact of fertility, particularly in male patients; optimization of novel techniques for severe oligozoospermia, and the impact of DNA damage on fertility outcomes.

Abdul Munaf Sultan Ahamed, MSc, MS, PG, PhD - Scientific Subcommittee Chair

Dr. Munaf is the IVF Clinical Scientific Director at CReATe Fertility. He holds MS from the University of Central Lancashire, U.K; Post Graduate in Assisted Reproductive Technology from the University of Warwick, U.K; MSc degree in clinical embryology from the University of Valencia and PhD from the University of Kentucky. He acquired embryology training from Bourn Hall in Cambridge under Prof. Robert Edward and PGD training from University of London. He is also a graduate of Mind Body Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

He has an extensive experience setting up and directing IVF laboratories. He worked as the Director of IVF Lab/Scientific Director at Anova Fertility and Reproductive Health in Toronto, Canada; Hartland Fertility & Gynecology Clinic - Winnipeg, MB and Group of Procrea Fertility Centers - Montreal, QC. Dr. Munaf also worked as a senior embryologist at TCART - Toronto, Canada, and Kentucky Center for Reproductive Medicine. Consultant Embryologist at Center for Reproductive Medicine and Robotic Surgery, St Louis, U.S.A

He mentored co-op students from University Toronto and McMaster University.

​Dr. Munaf has published the findings of his research in many peer-reviewed journals and presented at various conferences around the world and co-authored few books. His current research interests include the morphometric analysis of oocytes and embryos Using AI system, morpho kinetic characteristics of human embryo development. DNA Methylation Egg and Sperm.

He is a reviewer for the Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics and a member of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society (CFAS), the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM); American Association of Bioanalysis (AAB); and American College of Embryology (ACE).

His hobbies include photography and playing Golf.