You may have seen headlines about two male contraception leads recently: Adjudin and a drug that shuts off the contractions that move sperm along the vas deferens, potentially producing a sperm-free orgasm. Adjudin is the brainchild of a group of researchers at the Population Council in New York; the “dry orgasm pill" is the work of a group at Kings College London. Both projects are in the very early stages of development, with many years to go before a product is on the market. But both have captured the attention of the press, and you’ll probably hear more about them in the future.
MaleContraceptives.org has provided the complete story on each of these two leads. On the Adjudin and “dry orgasm pill" pages you can get the accurate information that not all journalists have the time or space to provide. There’s also background information on the how the drugs work, an evaluation of the two leads’ prospects, and lists of questions that will need answers before the drugs advance into the next stages of development.
Also new at MaleContraceptives.org is a graveyard for experimental male contraceptive methods that didn’t quite work out. Wondering what happened to Zavesca? Want to know why you never hear anything anymore about Gossypol? Turn to the “Nice try, but…” page to find out.
What’s missing when male contraceptives have been covered in the New York Times and the Journal of the American Medical Association? Why, “Geraldo at Large,” of course! On December 1st, a whole new audience was introduced to the male contraception issue. Although the 3-minute piece only briefly mentioned that the “dry orgasm pill" is at least 5-10 years down the road, the story did a good job of capturing the variety of attitudes about the subject. It features interviews with men and women on the street, along with brief comments by MCIP’s director and by a whipsmart and glamorous New York doctor.
You can watch it online:
Male 'Pill' in the news
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With all the male contraception research in the news lately, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the new year would bring a new male contraceptive – that the next latest, greatest thing is right around the corner. In reality, some leads and methods are way ahead of others. As we close out 2006, here’s a cheat sheet on where things stand:
In advanced or large-scale human studies; reversibility proven
- Male hormonal contraceptives, comprised of testosterone only or testosterone with a progestin. Trials in Europe, Asia, Latin America and North America are using various delivery methods for the hormones. The testosterone is administered as an injection, a gel or an implant. When used, progestins are administered as an injection or a pill.
Appears safe and effective in human studies; additional work needed to confirm reversibility
- RISUG is in the late stages of clinical trials in India, but some of the older studies would need to be repeated before US or European approval. Formal reversibility studies in humans have not started.
- The American Intra Vas Device (IVD), a double silicone plug inserted into the vas deferens, is currently being tested by Shepherd Medical Company.
- The Chinese intra-vas device, which is a single plug with a sperm-trapping mesh center, is being tested by the Chinese State Family Planning agencies.
- Simple wet heat method, aslo known as external heat, has been studied in animals recently as a booster for hormonal methods, but has not been studied formally in humans since the 1960s.
- Suspensory or internal heat method was last studied in the early 1990s by a group of researchers in France.
- Testicular ultrasound as a form of heat may come under new study in 2007.
Contraceptive effect in humans, but effectiveness/side effect tradeoff unclear
- Tripterygium wilfordii (TW), an herb used in traditional Chinese medicine, is in limbo. Research on the TW derivative triptolide has been suspended on the recommendation of the World Health Organization’s Taskforce for the Regulation of Male Fertility; other derivatives such as tripchlorolide remain to be studied further.
Works in animals; safety and effectiveness in humans not yet studied
- Adjudin complexed with a modified hormone and delivered as an injection is currently being studied by the Population Council in New York.
- Oleanolic acid, an extract of a South African tree, was last studied by a postdoctoral student in South Africa.
- Chloroform extract of papaya seeds is currently being studied in India.
- Neem leaf extracts as a male pill precursor, and neem oil micro-injection as a non-surgical alternative to vasectomy, are not currently being studied.
- High-intensity focused ultrasound as a non-surgical alternative to vasectomy is being studied by a startup which is seeking funding.
Early leads
- Halting the proper function of sperm-surface enzymes is being studied at Norfolk State University.
- Eppin and LDH-C4 immunocontraceptives are being studied at the University of North Carolina and Northwestern University, as well as several Chinese and Australian universities.
- A “Dry orgasm pill” is being developed at Kings College London.
- Drugs which block sperm calcium channels are being sought at Harvard.
- Ways to block the Septin 4 gene’s protein are being studied at the Population Council.
- Stopping the action of a protein essential for sperm motion is being studied at the University of Massachusetts.
Contraceptive graveyard: methods no longer considered effective or safe
- Gossypol turned out to be unreliably reversible, although it could be a non-surgical alternative to vasectomy.
- Zavesca works in lab mice but not in men.
- Injectable silicone or polyurethane plugs have been abandoned by the Chinese State Family Planning agencies due to slow onset of infertility and other concerns.
- Nifedipine has no funding to determine how reliable a contraceptive it really is.
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Editors
Elaine Lissner, Director of the Male Contraception Information Project (MCIP)
Email: info@NewMaleContraception.org
MCIP is entirely nonprofit and works in three areas: raising public awareness of promising nonhormonal male contraceptives, advocating increased and expedited government research, and serving as a resource for journalists who wish to write about the subject.
Kirsten Thompson, Director of the Male Contraceptive Coalition (MCC)
Email: info@MaleContraceptives.org
The Coalition’s objectives are to speed the development of new male contraceptives through increased legislative and institutional support, to raise funds for applied male contraception research and development, and to educate the public about the work of the research community.
