Advancing the possibility of pregnancy.
Integrating breakthrough reproductive science with accessible male infertility solutions
At the Forefront of Fertility
Reproductive Solutions was founded on the idea that there’s always a better way. A better way to collect. A better way to protect samples from damage. A better way to increase the chances of a successful pregnancy.
We believe the millions of couples struggling with infertility shouldn’t struggle with the results from outdated technology and assisted fertility methods. This means we develop the science-based technology that opens up new possibilities for everyone. From groundbreaking at-home solutions that reduce stress to patented technology that improves the health of the sample.
We’re committed. To people, patients, and a better way. All leading us to a brighter fertility future.
Company Executives
Meet the people driving the company forward in reproductive science and industry-leading technology with over 75 years of combined innovation experience.
John Smothers, company founder and current COO, struggled with infertility for over 7 years. “I know the stress that goes along with this process. It’s so stressful that it hurts. I know what they’re going through,” John shares. After tens of thousands of dollars, tests, and cycles of trying, the Smothers’ heartache gave way to a most joyful moment. Their first child was born—and healthy.
That was 30 years ago. And while a lot of advancements have been made since then, almost all are primarily focused on the female and the embryo. With 40% or more infertility issues attributed to a male factor (and rising), there seemed a whole area of unexplored fertility solutions just waiting for someone to find them.
As a successful businessman in Lubbock, Texas, John was introduced to Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center researchers. These reproductive scientists unveiled to John nearly two decades of first-ever research into traditional collection methods and their impact to sperm. It was stunning what was discovered. Sperm were so quickly damaged by changes to their environment that the way sperm were collected and contained had significant impact on their ability to fertilize. While the researchers were working primarily in the animal breeding industry, John saw a huge opportunity to help couples like him and his wife.
In 2018, John’s wife fell seriously ill. In her last days, she had one request, “Do whatever you can to help those couples.” She knew as John did that if they could succeed in bringing the collection technology to the community, they could help change the fertility future of others.
John promised he would. It’s a very personal promise that still sticks with him today. And it is reinforced by the personal dedication each person at Reproductive Solutions shares today.
Our Science Advisory Board
Dr. Prien is a board-certified high-complexity clinical laboratory director and is certified in both clinical andrology and embryology. He works directly with the medical team to assist in the treatment of infertility patients as part of the assisted reproductive technology program. In addition to his clinical duties, Dr. Prien maintains a robust teaching schedule on each campus and is an active researcher.
Dr. Prien conducts diverse physiology-based research in both animals and humans. He has received numerous grants, has published over 90 journal articles and has made approximately 250 presentations at regional, national and international meetings. Dr. Prien serves as a peer reviewer for several professional organizations for both grants and publications. Additionally, he currently holds four U.S. Patents, twenty international patents and three copyrights, with others pending. All awarded patents and other IP have been licensed to industry.
Dr. Rawlins received his Ph.D. in zoology from Michigan State University in 1984, specializing in the reproductive physiology and preimplantation embryology of nonhuman primates. He joined Rush University Medical Center in Chicago the same year and began development of its In Vitro Fertilization Program. This program expanded to include three independent laboratory sites conducting 1) clinical andrology, 2) clinical embryology, and 3) clinical research, respectively.
Dr. Rawlins has also built and directed numerous international IVF labs. The US clinics serviced the metropolitan areas of Chicago, downstate Illinois, southern Wisconsin, southern Michigan and Indiana. Through 2012, Dr. Rawlins supervised a staff of 12 technicians, at three facilities, completing approximately 1900 inseminations and 1000 IVF cycles per year across all sites.
He has also off-site directed IVF/ART laboratories for Centro de Fertilidad del Caribe, San Juan PR, Jarrett Fertility Group in Carmel IN, Rush NorthShore Hospital in Skokie IL, the Reproductive Medicine Institute in Oak Brook, IL, and the Rush-Copley Center for Reproductive Health in Aurora, IL.
Along with clinical responsibilities, Dr. Rawlins is an active academic. He lectures on reproductive anatomy and histology to medical students, lectured in the Division of Cell Biology in the Rush Graduate College, trained clinical fellows in the ABOG clinical Fellowship Program for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Rush, and lectured to residents on reproductive endocrinology and statistics.
Tex received his Ph.D. in Epigenetics from The University of Birmingham. He completed his first post-doctoral fellowship in the chromatin and gene expression laboratories at the Institute of Biomedical Research in Birmingham, UK. He completed a second fellowship in the Laboratory of Mammalian Molecular Embryology at the RIKEN institute in Kobe, Japan.
Tex returned to the United States as an embryologist at Shady Grove Fertility in Maryland. He then became the Director of Assisted Reproductive Technologies and Andrology laboratories at The University of Pennsylvania Fertility Care. From there, Tex moved to Auckland to serve as Scientific Director at Fertility Associates of New Zealand.
After 17 years, Dr. VerMilyea was recruited to return to Texas as the Scientific Director of Texas Fertility Centers. Most recently, Dr. VerMilyea has become the Vice President of Scientific Advancement for Ovation Fertility. Matthew remains active on multiple professional committees and scientific advisory boards.
Since 2004 he is the Laboratory Director for Fertility Centers of Illinois (FCI) Chicago/River North Embryology, Andrology and the Endocrinology Lab.
He received his doctoral degree from the Technical University Munich in Bavaria/Germany in 1995 and his postdoctoral thesis in 2004 qualified him as a university lecturer in Experimental Reproductive Medicine at the Bavarian University of Wuerzburg, Germany.
Dr. Liebermann has authored numerous papers and contributed more than 15 book chapters in the area of reproductive science. In 2007, he co-authored a book with Dr. Michael Tucker titled Vitrification in Human Assisted Reproduction. He is a member of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Society for the Study of Reproduction, and the American Board of Bioanalysis. He serves also as an ad Hoc for Fertility & Sterility, Human Reproduction, Reproductive Biomedicine Online, Reproduction, European Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics and Reproductive Biology, and Cryobiology.
