{"id":1313,"date":"2025-10-02T18:15:40","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T18:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/?page_id=1313"},"modified":"2025-10-02T18:15:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T18:15:41","slug":"rafael-martinez","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/rafael-martinez\/","title":{"rendered":"Rafael Martinez"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"690\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-690x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"Man in a beige vest with a purple background.\" class=\"wp-image-1215\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-690x1024.jpeg 690w, https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-202x300.jpeg 202w, https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-269x400.jpeg 269w, https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-768x1140.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R-1035x1536.jpeg 1035w, https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/198\/2024\/02\/Martinez-R.jpeg 1125w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 690px) 100vw, 690px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Rafael Martinez, Ph.D.<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Assistant Professor <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Email: <a href=\"mailto:rmartinez@tarleton.edu\" data-type=\"mailto\" data-id=\"mailto:rmartinez@tarleton.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rmartinez@tarleton.edu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Phone:<a href=\"tel:+12545957001\" data-type=\"tel\" data-id=\"tel:+12545957001\"> (254)-595-7001<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Office: Autry 305A<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:6px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Research Interests<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Equine Reproduction<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Assisted Reproductive Technologies<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Gamete and Embryo Biology<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Semen Cryopreservation and Sperm Selection<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Uterine Health and Reproductive Microbiome<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Applied Reproduction for Conservation Species<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Education<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Undergraduate Education<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>B.S. in Animal Science, Sam Houston State University, 2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Graduate Education<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>M.S. in Animal Science, Sam Houston State University, 2015<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ph.D. in Animal Science, Texas A&amp;M University, 2022<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Professional Biography<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Rafael E. Martinez is an Assistant Professor of Animal Science at Tarleton State University whose research centers on equine reproductive physiology and assisted reproductive technologies. His group investigates oocyte maturation, fertilization strategies such as ICSI and IVF, early embryo development, and stallion semen selection and cryopreservation. Ongoing projects also evaluate uterine health and the reproductive microbiome, bridging basic research with industry application. Beyond horses, Dr. Martinez leads collaborations applying advanced reproductive methods to endangered species, including conservation programs for the Somali Wild Ass. He teaches courses in equine breeding management and enterprise, mentors undergraduate and graduate researchers, and works closely with regional and international partners to expand experiential learning and internship opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Scholarly Works<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-advgb-button alignnone\"><a class=\"wp-block-advgb-button_link advgbbtn-926c822d-9f39-403a-a892-17e73f6c0d9c\" href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=n1Azz2EAAAAJ&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span><strong>Google Scholar<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<style class=\"advgb-styles-renderer\">.advgbbtn-926c822d-9f39-403a-a892-17e73f6c0d9c{font-size:18px;color:#4f2d7f !important;background-color:#ffffff !important;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px !important;padding:10px 30px 10px 30px;border-width:4px !important;border-color:#4f2d7f !important;border-style:solid !important;border-radius:25px !important;}.advgbbtn-926c822d-9f39-403a-a892-17e73f6c0d9c:hover{box-shadow:1px 1px 12px 0px #ccc;opacity:1;transition:all 0.2s ease;}.advgbbtn-926c822d-9f39-403a-a892-17e73f6c0d9c > i {font-size:30px;color:inherit;float:left;margin-right:7px;}<\/style>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rafael Martinez, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Email: rmartinez@tarleton.edu Phone: (254)-595-7001 Office: Autry 305A Research Interests Education Undergraduate Education B.S. in Animal Science, Sam Houston State University, 2014 Graduate Education M.S. in &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":845,"featured_media":580,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-fullwidth.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1313","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"coauthors":[],"author_meta":{"author_link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/author\/swdmcelyea\/","display_name":"swdmcelyea"},"relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 7 months ago","modified":"Updated 7 months ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on October 2, 2025","modified":"Updated on October 2, 2025"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on October 2, 2025 6:15 pm","modified":"Updated on October 2, 2025 6:15 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","featured_img":false,"series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/845"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1313"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1359,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1313\/revisions\/1359"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/animal-science\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}