(DR) Infarmed
An experimental contraceptive pill for men has just passed the first human security test. It is able to block sperm production.
Were, this Tuesday, in Communications Medicinethe results of the first experimental essay of a male contraceptive pill.
The test included 16 people and was only intended to test whether the medicine reached adequate levels in the body, as well as if it was triggered any serious side effects, such as changes related to heart rhythm, hormonal function, inflammation, mood or sexual function.
In all doses tested, No side effects were observed significant. This is a fundamental step for the approval of the pill, now allowing the pill to be tested in broader tests that will analyze both safety and effectiveness.
These results are a fundamental first step for pill approval.
Today, the only men’s birth control options are condoms and vasectomies. The latter can be reversed, but the actual success rate of the reversal procedure varies greatly in terms of the likelihood of a person conceiving a child later.
If approved, the new pill will be the First drug in your class.
How the Male Contraceptive Pill Works
As explained by, the experimental pill, called YCT-529It was designed to interrupt sperm production by interruption of specific signals in the body.
Specifically, the medicine works blocking a protein call “Retinoic Acid Alpha Receiver”which is known for playing a fundamental role in the formation and maturation of sperm.
In the testicles, the receiver would normally be activated by the insertion of a “key” – a vitamin A metabolite – but the medicine prevents this key from fitting in place. This, in turn, prevents chain reaction that ends with sperm production.
In preclinical tests with male laboratory rats, the drug triggered a reversible infertility within four weeks after its use, revealing a 99% efficacy in pregnancy prevention in the females of the rats with whom the males treated mate.
Other tests in non -human primates presented similar results, with the sperm count dropped dramatically two weeks after the beginning of the drug and to completely recover 10 to 15 weeks after its interruption. These preclinical tests prepared the ground for the recent clinical trial in humans.
Now the new essay has included 16 men aged between 32 and 59 years, all previously subjected to Vasectomies. In all doses and conditions tested, drug levels in the body have reached safe levels.
Although there were no remarkable side effects in this short test, future study with larger study groups will have to monitor these effects.
