Scientists are one step closer to creating an anti-baby pill for men

After more successful tests on mice, scientists believe they are one step closer to developing a contraceptive pill for men.

Contraceptive pills for women have been around for decades, but pills for men are so far "mission impossible," according to the BBC.

The results of an American study, published in the journal Cell, show that scientists were able to create pills that made mice temporarily infertile without interfering with their sex drive.

Experts state that such results are great, but that it is now necessary to carry out tests on humans.

The drug targets a protein that exists only in the testicles and is crucial for sperm production

American scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Baylor College of Medicine are testing a drug called JQ1. The drug targets a protein that exists only in the testicles and is crucial for sperm production.

Administration of the drug reduced the production of sperm in the mice and they became infertile. Then when they stopped giving the pills to the mice, they were able to continue breeding normally and having young.

One of the researchers, Dr. James Bradner, says that the drug causes a rapid and reversible decrease in the number of spermatozoa and affects their motility.

"Results show that a reversible, oral contraceptive for men is possible".

Scientists hope to be able to target the same protein in men during research, but to make the drug safe and effective for humans, it will be necessary to conduct many more tests than have been done so far.

Dr. Alan Pacey from the University of Sheffield says that the need for a contraceptive pill for mice is great, because the solutions so far are mainly based on influencing the male hormone testosterone.

"The similarity in sperm production is very similar in mice and humans, so in the end we can expect this research to really contribute to the development of the male contraceptive pill."

He believes that human testing should be quite simple.

Professor Mojra Obrajan from Monash University in Australia says that this discovery could have a major scientific and social impact.

"The similarity in sperm production is very similar in mice and humans, so ultimately we can expect this research to really contribute to the development of the male contraceptive pill."

Although there is an urgent need for a new type of contraception, he adds, the journey from what is on paper today to the moment a new product sees the light of day is likely to be a long one.

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