2023-04-17 15:46:22
Until now, most of the contraceptives are designed for women (pill, ring, patch, IUD, injectable…). Men have only two options: condom or vasectomy. In the race to find more male alternatives, so that the burden of family planning does not fall solely on them, researchers at Washington State University (WSU) have discovered a gene present in multiple mammalian species that could pave the way for a highly effective, reversible, non-hormonal male contraceptive for humans and animals.
The team identified the expression of the Arrdc5 gene in testicular tissue of mice, pigs, cattle, and humans. Specifically, when they knocked out the gene in mice, they created infertility only in males, affecting their sperm count, movement, and shape.
“The study identifies for the first time that this gene is expressed only in testicular tissue, nowhere else on the body, and in multiple species of mammals. When this gene is inactivated or inhibited in men, produce sperm that cannot fertilize an eggoand that is a primary goal for the development of male contraceptives,” explains Jon Oatley, a professor in the WSU School of Molecular Biosciences and lead author of the research published in the journal Nature Communications.
Importantly, missing the gene also causes significant infertility creating a condition called oligoasthenoteratospermia, or OAT. This condition, the most common diagnosis for human male infertility, shows a decrease in the number of sperm produced, slower motility, and a deformation that prevents sperm from uniting with an egg.
In the WSU study, male mice lacking this gene produced 28% less sperm, which moved 2.8 times slower than normal mice, and about 98% of their semen had heads and parts. abnormal intermediates.
The study indicates that the protein encoded by this gene is necessary for normal sperm production. For this reason, the next step for the Oatley team will be to work on the design of a drug that inhibits the production or function of that protein.
That interruption would not require any hormonal interference, a key hurdle in male contraception, since testosterone performs other roles beyond sperm production in men, including building bone mass and muscle strength, as well as producing blood cells. reds. Designing a drug targeting this protein would easily do so as well. reversible as contraceptive.
“You don’t want to remove the ability to produce sperm, just prevent the sperm that are being produced from being produced properly. So, in theory, if you stop using the drug, the sperm would begin to generate normally again“says the researcher.
Oatley and the study’s first author, Mariana Giassetti, have already filed a provisional patent for the development of a male contraceptive based on this gene and the protein it encodes.
Because the gene is found in all mammalian species, this knowledge holds promise for use in animals as well, Oatley says. The team analyzed available biological data on protein and DNA sequences in mammals and found the gene in almost every known species. This opens up the potential for developing male contraceptives for use in livestock, perhaps replacing castration in some cases, as a way to control reproduction, and in wildlife when seeking to limit overpopulation of a species.
The initial approach, however, is to give humans more control over their own reproduction. “Right now, we don’t really have anything on the male side for contraception other than surgery and only a small percentage of men choose a vasectomy. If we can turn this discovery into a solution for contraception, it could have a far-reaching impact,” Oatley says.
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