New birth control calcium for sperm

New method of contraception: Calcium damages the sperm

(13.05.2011)

Calcium can damage the sperm. What might seem frightening to the first impression on men could in the future contribute to a new form of contraception, hope Saarland scientists. The researchers of the Homburger Institute for Pharmacology report in the current issue of the journal „Science Signaling“, that their laboratory experiments have established a link between the motility and fertility of sperm and the concentration of clacium in the epididymal fluid.

It may be possible to use the sperm-damaging effect of calcium in the future as a method of contraception for men, the scientists said when presenting their study. However, the implementation of the research results will not be easy. Because in the course of their investigation, the researchers were able to demonstrate that an increased calcium concentration in the epididymal fluid almost eliminates the mobility (motility) and fertility (fertility) of the sperm.

Calcium ions are crucial for spermatogenesis
The scientists at the Homburger Institute of Pharmacology explained that calcium ions play a crucial role in the development of functional spermatozoa. The calcium concentration in the epididymal fluid is regulated by the calcium channels within narrow limits, for the mobility and fertility of sperm a reduction in calcium concentration (about one quarter) in the course of the development process is required, explained the researchers in Saarland. However, in their studies with genetically modified mice whose TRPV6 channel was blocked, such a decrease in calcium concentration could not be made. The fertility and motility of the spermatozoa was therefore almost eliminated, said Petra Weißgerber from the University of Saarland - specializing in experimental and clinical pharmacology and toxicology.

Blocking the calcium channel as a contraceptive method?
According to Petra Weissgerber, the male animals whose calcium channel was blocked were barely able to produce offspring. To derive a new method of contraception from their findings, the next step would be to develop a drug capable of blocking human TRPV6 channels, the researchers said. However, the relationship between the natural variations in calcium ion concentration in the epididymal fluid and potentially involuntary male infertility has not been further investigated in the current study by the Homburger Institute of Pharmacology. However, it was possible to explain the process undergone by the spermatozoa passing through the epididymis and clearly demonstrate a relationship between the calcium ion concentration and the development of functional spermatozoa. (Fp)

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Picture credits: Dieter Schütz