Post Date November, 16 2024
Men now use the same two methods of contraception as in the 1950s: vasectomy and condom use. However, vasectomy is too serious, and young people often claim that safe application is troublesome and destroys the atmosphere. Therefore, the responsibility for contraception certainly falls on women.
Finally, this phenomenon will change. A new drug called JQ1 has been proved to be a simple and feasible male contraceptive option, although the males participating in the experiment are mice, not humans. JQ1 was initially used for cancer treatment, but it attracted the attention of Martin Matt of Baylor Medical College in Houston, Texas. Dr. Matt noticed that the target gene of this drug is very similar to another gene called BRDT, which only exists in the testis. BRDT is responsible for the production of healthy sperm by turning on or off other gene functions. Mice with BRDT gene removed are infertile. A 2010 study found that European men with BRDT gene mutations have a high probability of reducing the number of sperm.
Combined with BRDT gene, JQ1 plays a similar role in the short term. According to the report of Dr. Matt and his colleagues in the journal Cell, the sperm count of male mice decreased by 89% and the sperm had no vitality after being given a small dose of JQ1 within 6 weeks. In the last month of the test, mice receiving high-dose drugs were no longer able to reproduce. Although each mouse was equipped with two fertile female mice, it showed normal male welcome desire. The mice without medicine gave birth to two partners within a month.
The important thing is that these effects are completely reversible. Once the drug is stopped, the male mice return to normal sperm count, their reproductive organs are not permanently damaged, and their sperm are healthy. Mice receiving higher doses of drugs and taking longer periods of time may take more time to recover, but they can indeed recover to normal, which only takes 1 to 3 months.
It is good news for the development of drugs. Nowadays, male contraceptive research only focuses on testosterone. However, there are disadvantages: excessive use of testosterone will increase the risk of prostate cancer, or produce behavioral side effects (synthetic steroids play a similar role in the body and testosterone can cause "steroid mania" - characterized by manic mood and moodiness.) Worse, the contraceptive effect of testosterone is not uniform among people. For example, it works better on Chinese men than on whites.
