Male Birth Control Immobilizes Sperm Temporarily
Researchers have devised a form of non-hormonal male birth control that effectively immobilizes sperm. By injecting mice with a compound called TDI-11861, the scientists “turn off” an enzyme within sperm, inhibiting it from moving along the fallopian tube to fertilize an egg. Of the 52 male mice injected with the compounds and paired with mates, no pregnancies occurred. The effect lasted for around two and a half hours and when it wore off, the sperm was unharmed and resumed normal movement. “It’s pretty clear that this is an on-off switch for sperm,” says Lonny Levin, a professor of pharmacology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York who also co-authored the study. Right now, Levin and his team are working on an oral version of the contraceptive, and the project remains a positive step forward in developing more accessible, diverse forms of birth control. Read more at Wired.
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Via wired.com link opens in a new window
