Finally, the Promise of Male Birth Control in a Pill: Compound Makes Mice Reversibly Infertile
Date: 17.8.2012
Researchers have finally found a compound that may offer the first effective and hormone-free birth control pill for men. The study in the August 17th Cell, a Cell Press publication, shows that the small molecule makes male mice reversibly infertile without putting a damper on their sex drive. When the animals stop taking this new form of birth control, their sperm rebound and they are again able to sire perfectly healthy offspring.
Known as JQ1, the compound developed in the Bradner lab works by targeting a testis-specific protein called BRDT that is essential for fertility. When mice are given the BRDT-inhibiting molecule, they begin producing fewer sperm and those sperm they do produce don't swim as well.
