Scientists working on a new male birth control have made a 'promising' new development that could see a new reversible option for men in the future.
The news sparks hope that the world is one step closer to a new birth control hitting the market that is designed specifically for men.
There are numerous forms of female contraception in clinical use, but male contraception continues to be very limited and lacks a medication-based approach.
However, the new study in the journal Science showed 'a promising approach to develop a birth control pill for men'.
According to the Irish Independent, the new non-hormonal male birth control pill has been developed and tested.
In the research, scientists used a small molecule to inhibit serine/threonine kinase 33 (STK33) - a protein known to be specifically required for fertility in both mice and men.
Yevgeniya Nusinovich, Senior Editor at Science commented on the new research development.
"The most promising compound successfully reduced fertility in vivo in male mice without any detectable safety concerns. The effects of this treatment were reversible, and the mice recovered their fertility soon after the treatment was discontinued".
Science Daily reports that researchers are continuing to build on findings performed during a large-scale drug screening.
"Although researchers have been investigating several strategies to develop male contraceptives, we still do not have a birth control pill for men," said corresponding author Dr. Martin Matzuk, director of the Center for Drug Discovery and chair of the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Baylor.
Scientists hope to evaluate their new findings in primates to determine their effectiveness as reversible male birth control.
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