Promising Advancements Made on a Male Contraceptive
A new possibility for male contraceptive stuns sperm. Photo: Derek Berwin/Getty Images/NPR
It finally seems like the scientific world is making headway on a male contraceptive.
Women, (who bear the brunt of birth control responsibility), are provided quite a myriad of options, from birth control pills, vaginal rings, copper intrauterine devices, hormonal intrauterine devices, contraceptive sponges, cervical caps, spermicides, diaphragms, female condoms, and tubal ligation.
However, the only options for men so far are condoms, vasectomies, or abstinence. In recent years there has been a push, albeit unsuccessful thus far, for men to take more responsibility for their own birth control. For around 40 years, we have been hearing the same report; birth control for men is five to ten years away. And while that hasn’t proven to be true yet, the recent study published on Feb. 14, 2023, in the Nature Communications journal may just be the breakthrough everyone has been waiting for.
Jochen Buck, Melanie Balbach, and Lonny Levain of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York discovered an enzyme that effectively stuns sperm. In order to activate sperm, soluble adenylyl cyclase (SAC) must react with bicarbonates, in turn releasing the CAMP enzyme, which then activates the sperm swim towards the egg for fertilization.
SAC is found in almost every cell in the body, though some men naturally don’t have it, which leaves them with no harmful side effects, only infertility, and a very small increase in the likelihood of kidney stones. The molecule now being experimented with is TDI-11861 binds with SAC, rendering it unable to react with the bicarbonates and thus stopping the release of CAMP and activation of the sperm. It is, in essence, an off-switch for sperm.
The difference between sperm with SAC and the stunned sperm with the SAC inhibitor. Photo: Melanie Balbach, LevBuck Laboratory, Weill Cornell Medicine
While this contraceptive is still only being tested on mice, it has very promising results. On mice, it was 100% as birth control within 2.5 hours of being injected with TDI-11861 and 91% effective within 3.5 hours, all while having no side effects on sexual behavior or performance. Many experts are wary since often experiments on animals do not transfer the same to humans, however, SAC is found in almost every mammal and is used across species for the same function, so expectations are high for when human trials can begin.
This form of contraceptive is unique in a variety of ways. One: it is temporary. The study reveals that it lasts for only around three hours and has fully worn off in a day at most, leaving the man fully fertile once again. Two: it is not hormonal. Other contraceptives being tested for men inhibit testosterone or other hormones, leading to undesirable and occasionally harmful effects.
In addition, it is different from women’s birth control, almost all of which affect one’s hormones and cause unpleasant side effects. And finally: it works immediately and doesn’t have to be taken consistently. Because it does not need to alter the man’s hormones, the pill or gel works as soon as it enters a man’s system, and only needs to be used 15 to 30 minutes in advance. Moreover, one exclusively has to take it on a need-to basis.
It is difficult to say whether this will be the miracle pill people have been waiting for. If it is, it will most likely be a game-changer for the balance of responsibility men and women bear in unplanned pregnancies.