Meet the team working to create the male contraceptive pill
It’s time to talk about sex – and how university researchers are pioneering a radical change in male contraception
At some point in the last few years, when men and women get as far as the bedroom door the onus has been placed on the fairer sex to be the one taking “precautions”.
At present, there are only two methods of contraception for men recommended by the NHS – while there are about 13 different options for women.
Now, though, that could all be about to change – and it’s thanks to remarkable and radical work being conducted by scientists at the University of Wolverhampton.
Attempts to develop a male pill so far have been unsuccessful owing to alterations they make in male hormone levels which can be irreversible.
But a new form of male contraception could soon become a reality after Professor John Howl and Dr Sarah Jones, from the University of Wolverhampton’s School of Pharmacy, discovered that they can temporarily switch off sperm’s ability to swim – and therefore stop them from being able to fertilise an egg. It is a radical proposition, and one that could revolutionise an entire branch of the pharmaceuticals industry.
“One of the reasons there has been a delay with male contraception is that sperm are very difficult to penetrate and get inside to target the mechanisms that govern their behaviour,” says Dr Jones.
The pair have successfully discovered a way around this roadblock and are now at the forefront of cell penetrating peptide research which it is hoped could be used in both birth control techniques and IVF in the future.
