
Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Male oral contraceptive
Introduction
A male oral contraceptive is not medically available to the public, although several forms are in various stages of research and development.
Botanical compounds
Botanical compounds
- In 1980, a test was successfully performed on male rats using leaves from the neem tree.[1]
- In 1995, researchers isolated compounds from a Chinese plant called Tripterygium wilfordii.[2]
- In 2002, researchers fed extracts from the seeds of papaya fruits (Carica papaya) to monkeys. Subsequently, the monkeys had no sperm in their ejaculate. [3]
- In 2002, tests were performed on male rats using oleanolic acid, extracted from Eugenia jambolana, a tree in the southern part of Africa. The tests demonstrated that the chemical was found to reversibly lower the rats’ sperm motility without affecting the sperm count.[4]
- Pills made from gossypol, a compound found in cotton seeds, have been abandoned as a potential male contraceptive because the compound was proven to cause permanent infertility.[5]
Pharmaceutical tests
Pharmaceutical tests
- Calcium channel blockers such as nifedipine may cause reversible infertility by altering the lipid metabolism of sperm so that they are not able to fertilize an egg.[6]
Research on sperm
Research on sperm
- Dr. George Witman has performed research on sperm tail proteins required for motility.[7]
- Dr. David Claphamhas performed research on sperm-specific ion exchange channels needed for hyperactivation.[8]
- Dr. Joseph Hall performed research on sperm head enzymes needed to recognize an egg.[9]
References
References
- ↑ Male antifertility activity of Azadirachta Indica …[J Postgrad Med. 1980] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Recent progress in research on Tripterygium: a mal…[Contraception. 1995] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Chloroform extract of Carica papaya seeds induces …[Asian J Androl. 2002] – PubMed Result
- ↑ The effect of oleanolic acid on sperm motion chara…[Lab Anim. 2002] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Gossypol: a contraceptive for men. [Contraception. 2002] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Pregnancy following discontinuation of a calcium c…[Hum Reprod. 1995] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Novel role for a sterol response element binding p…[Mol Cell Biol. 2004] – PubMed Result
- ↑ CatSper1 required for evoked Ca2+ entry and contro…[Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003] – PubMed Result
- ↑ Purification and characterization of protein D/E, …[Prep Biochem Biotechnol. 1997] – PubMed Result
- “An oral regimen of cyproterone acetate and testosterone undecanoate for spermatogenic suppression in men” by MC Meriggiola et al. in Fertility and Sterility, November 1997.
- “Inhibition of spermatogenesis in men using various combinations of oral progestagens and percutaneous or oral androgens” by JF Guerin and J Rollet in the International Journal of Andrology, June 1988.
- “Recent progress in research on Tripterygium: a male antifertility plant” by QS Zhen [sic] et al. in Contraception, February 1995.
- “Chloroform extract of Carica papaya seeds induces long-term reversible azoospermia in langur monkey” by NK Lohiya et al. in the Asian Journal of Andrology, March 2002.
- “The effect of oleanolic acid on sperm motion characteristics and fertility of male Wistar rats” by MC Mdhluli and G van der Horst in Laboratory Animal, October 2002.
- “Male antifertility activity of Azadirachta indica in mice” by VY Deshpande et al. in the Journal of Postgraduate Medicine, July 1980.
- “Gossypol: a contraceptive for men” by E Coutinho in Contraception, April 2002.
- “Pregnancy following discontinuation of a calcium channel blocker in the male partner” by A Hershlag et al. in Human Reproduction, March 1995.
- “Long-term non-hormonal male contraception in mice using N-butyldeoxynojirimycin” by CM Walden et al. in Human Reproduction, May 2006.
- “AF-2364 [1-(2,4-dichlorobenzyl)-1H-indazole-3-carbohydrazide is a potential male contraceptive: a review of recent data”] by CY Cheng et al. in Contraception, October 2005.
- “Novel role for a sterol response element binding protein in directing spermatogenic cell-specific gene expression” by H Wang et al. in Molecular and Cellular Biology, December 2004.
- “CatSper1 required for evoked Ca2+ entry and control of flagellar function in sperm” by AE Carlson et al. in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, December 2003.
- “Purification and characterization of protein D/E, a putative sperm-binding protein involved in fertilization” by JC Hall and CE Tubbs in Preparative Biochemistry and Biotechnology, November 1997.
