Researchers have found the gene that affects sperm movement in a way that does not allow them to fertilize the egg. This had led to new hope in finding effective treatments infertility in men. But more importantly, this could lead to the development of a male version of contraceptive pill.
Currently the only options for men are condoms or a surgical vasectomy, which is irreversible. A number of attempts at creating a male version of the Pill have been tried so far, but none have been successfully developed.
As a matter of fact, this faulty gene was found by accident. Researchers from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences in Tehran, in Iran, were looking for gene defects linked to inherited deafness and stumbled upon the faulty gene while studying a population in Iran. They found two families were carrying a mutation in the CATSPER1 gene so the protein is missing or not functioning properly.
Dr Michael Hilddebrand, co author of the study from University of Iowa, said: “We have identified CATSPER1 as a gene that is involved in non-syndromic male infertility in humans, a finding which could lead to future infertility therapies that replace the gene or the protein. But perhaps even more importantly, this finding could have implications for male contraception.”
“Identification of targets such as the CATSPER1 gene that are involved in the fertility process and are specific for sperm – potentially minimising the side effects of a drug targeting the protein’s function – provide new targets for a pharmacological male contraceptive.”
There is a possibility that a drug could be created that could be made to stick to the CATSPER1 protein and prevent it from working properly. This would result in the man producing abnormal sperm which is unable to fertilize an egg.
The authors warned that this kind of treatment, known as immunocontraception, is still in its infancy and in order to be useful it would need to be safe, effective and reversible.
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